The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has lowered growth
projections for world trade in 2013 for the second time, but has said the
conditions for improved trade are already falling into place.
WTO economists now
predict growth in 2013 at 2.5% against 3.3% projected in April
and 4.3% earlier in the year.
The projection is
still higher than the 2% growth in world trade achieved in 2012.
The multilateral
body blamed developing economies for the lower projections, stating that they
are not importing as much as anticipated. It also expressed concerns about
India’s economy being in the midst of a sharp contraction.
Slow revival in
demand for imports in developing economies has hindered growth of exports from
both developed and developing countries in the first half of 2013 and was the
reason for the lower forecasts, the economists said.
On a positive note,
the WTO believes that the conditions for improved trade are already falling
into place as encouraging data from Europe, the US, Japan and China suggests
that the economic slowdown has bottomed out and that a tentative recovery is
underway.
