The IMF last week made its second cut to global growth forecasts, predicting a rate of +3.2% this year and +3.5% in 2017, having previously forecast 3.4% and 3.6% respectively. They noted that downside risks to the global economic outlook have increased since October, “raising the possibility of a more generalized slowdown and a sudden pull-back of capital flows.” Looking at the graph below showing the countries expected to be the worst performers, it’s pretty easy to draw some conclusions as to what the main trouble are – plummeting oil and commodity prices are a consistent theme for nearly all of the worst performers, joined by fiscal mismanagement and political turmoil.
