The International Monetary Fund sounded the alarm yesterday Sunday, explaining that the global economy will experience greater gloom than expected, especially in Europe.

The IMF also attributed these gloomy forecasts to the tightening of monetary policy resulting from persistently high and widespread inflation, alongside weak growth momentum in China, continued supply disruptions, and food insecurity caused by the Russian attack on Ukraine.

Also, the IMF lowered last month its global growth forecast for 2023 from a previous expectation of 2.9 percent to 2.7 percent.

The fund also wrote in a blog prepared for the G20 leaders summit in Indonesia that the latest indicators “confirm that the outlook is more bleak,” especially in Europe. Adding that recent purchasing managers' indices, which measure activity in manufacturing and services, show weakness in most G20 economies, with economic activity expected to contract amid high inflation.

This, and the worsening energy crisis in Europe is expected to cause severe damage to growth and increase inflation, which if it continues to rise could lead to larger increases in interest rate policy and tighter global financial conditions.

Additionally, the International Monetary Fund clarified that this in turn poses “increased risks of sovereign debt crises in weak economies.”

It also added that the multiplicity of severe climate phenomena will harm growth worldwide.