Economic growth
Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East this week directly translated into higher energy costs across emerging markets, forcing central banks to reassess growth projections. Global growth is projected to slow to 3.1% in 2026 and 3.2% in 2027, with slowdown particularly pronounced in emerging market and developing economies
Economic growth
China's property market continued its downward slide this week, creating headwinds for broader economic growth despite aggressive policy intervention. China's property sector continued to weigh on economic activity, with property investment falling 16.2% year over year in the first five months of 2026, while national
Economic growth
Indonesia's economy grew 5.39% year on year in the fourth quarter of 2025, accelerating from 5.04% in the third quarter and marking the strongest quarterly expansion since the third quarter of 2022. For Southeast Asia's largest economy, that acceleration matters well beyond its borders,
Economic growth
On June 11, 2026, the World Bank released its latest Global Economic Prospects report with a headline number that immediately drew attention across financial markets: global growth is now forecast to slow to 2.5% in 2026, down from 2.9% in 2025. That would make 2026 the slowest year
Economic growth
Egypt's economic reform programme reached a significant milestone in February 2026, when the IMF Executive Board completed combined reviews of the country's Extended Fund Facility and approved release of approximately $2.3 billion in additional financing, bringing total disbursements under the programme to about $5.2
Economic growth
East Africa is on track to grow by 5.8% in 2026, up from 5.4% in 2025, making it the fastest-growing sub-region on the African continent by a significant margin. West Africa is projected at 4.4%, Central Africa at 3%, and Southern Africa at 2%. The
Economic growth
Ethiopia is the IMF's fastest-growing African economy in 2026, projected to expand 9.2%, more than double the sub-Saharan Africa regional average of approximately 4.3%. That number is the result of specific, deliberate interventions that have been years in the making, not a commodity windfall
Economic growth
The numbers coming out of Taiwan's statistics office in 2026 are the kind that make economists do a double take. The Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics now forecasts GDP growth of 9.6% for 2026, the highest rate in 16 years. In the first quarter of
Economic growth
The China Plus One strategy has been discussed for years. In 2026, it is no longer theoretical. Manufacturing investment is flowing into alternative production hubs at a pace beginning to reshape trade maps, corporate supply chains, and employment patterns across three continents. India has emerged as one of the primary
Economic growth
The Gulf Cooperation Council states have been discussing economic diversification for over a decade. In 2026, the data is beginning to catch up with the ambition, though the Middle East conflict has introduced risks that were not in any of the original forecasts. The IMF projects Arab economies will expand
Economic growth
The UN's headline growth projection for the global economy in 2026 is 2.7%, a modest deceleration from 2.8% in 2025 and well below the 3.2% average recorded before the pandemic. That number matters, but it conceals a divergence that is shaping economic life very differently
Economic growth
Japan's demographic situation is no longer approaching. It is here. The country's working-age population has been in constant decline, falling 16% from a peak of 87.3 million in 1995 to 73.7 million in 2024. The old-age dependency ratio more than doubled from