IMF's Georgieva urges countries to keep trade as an engine of growth

International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief Kristalina Georgieva urged member countries to keep trade as an engine of growth for the world economy despite President Donald Trump's steep new tariffs, warning that a larger-scale trade war could have negative consequences.

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Georgieva, speaking to reporters at the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank, mapped out a sober view of a global economy that was doing better than feared when IMF and World Bank members last gathered in Washington in April, but still faced many risks, including inflation, high debt and growing unrest in countries around the world.

The IMF is predicting global real GDP growth of 3.2 per cent for 2025, down from 3.3 per cent in 2024, but up slightly from a July forecast of 3.0 per cent and a more severe April forecast of 2.8 per cent that came after Trump imposed tariffs on nearly every country in the world, triggering a tit-for-tat escalation with China.

The relative calm of recent months was shattered last week when China imposed new export controls on rare earth metals needed for the technology sector, and Trump responded by imposing new IOO per cent duties on Chinese imports.

Georgieva, the IMF's managing director, noted that so far only three countries - the United States, China and Canada - had raised tariffs, and she was urging countries to exercise restraint to avoid fallout such as higher inflation, lower growth and employment effects.