IMF growth forecast revised up in the US and down in the Eurozone
The International Monetary Fund projects that the global economy will grow by 3.3% in 2025 and 2026. While the global growth forecast remains unchanged, there have been revisions at the country level. The growth prospects for the United States have improved as the 2025 GDP forecast was revised up to 2.7% (as of January 2025) from 1.7% (as of January 2024). However, the Eurozone growth outlook has worsened, with the 2025 GDP growth expected only at 1.0% currently, compared to the 1.7% forecast from a year ago. According to the IMF weaker-than-expected momentum at the end of 2024, especially in manufacturing, and heightened political and policy uncertainty are the main reasons. Such revision is mostly influenced by the adjustments in France and Germany. Compared to October's expectations, German GDP growth was revised down the most by 0.5 percentage point in 2025 (to 0.3%) and by 0.3 percentage points in the following year (2026 GDP forecast at 1.1%). This is seen as a major revision of the outlook for the main trading partner of the region. The risks to the current CEE growth forecast remain skewed to the downside.