IMF: World Economy Will Not Recover Until 2010

By: Stephanie Gesselle

It was announced today by the IMF that the recent recession which is the largest we have had since World War II is not predicted to improve until after 2010. This prediction of 2010 is slightly longer than previously predicted by the IMF. The agency, which represents 185 countries, says now that global unemployment levels will predicatively rise through 2010 before receding. Even this recovery will come slowly at only 1.9% which is much slower than past recoveries Things will get worse before they get batter. In 2009 the economic decline is predicted at nearly -1.3. Developed economies such as North America and Western Europe are expected to contract 3.8 percent in total. Other countries like Japan, Russia, Germany, Mexico, and Brazil are also estimated to decline economically in 2009 before they begin to recover. A member of the IMF states, "Thus, financial conditions in the mature markets are projected to improve only slowly, as insolvency concerns are diminished by greater clarity over losses on bad assets and injections of public capital, and counter-party risks and market volatility are reduced." Overall, we can expect another year of recession before hopes of any improvement in 2010.