New Year’s optimism on financial markets has quickly been curbed by the World Bank, which on Tuesday cut its global growth forecast for 2013.
“Four years after the onset of the global financial crisis, the worst appears to be over. However, the global economy remains fragile, as high-income countries continue to suffer from volatility and slow growth,” the Washington-based institution said in its latest “Global Economic Prospects” report.
Warning of potential downside risks in the eurozone, U.S. debt issues, declining Chinese investment or a disruption to oil supplies, the bank expects the world economy to grow by 2.4 percent in 2013, down from its June forecast of 3 percent.