The World Bank expects the weakest global economic growth since the start of the coronavirus pandemic this year, thanks to the ramifications of the Iran war.
The institute has revised its forecast for 2026 downward by 0.1 percentage point to 2.5 per cent, according to a report published by the World Bank.
Last year, the global economy grew by 2.9 per cent.
The reasons for the downward revision are high inflation and rising energy prices, after shipping in the Strait of Hormuz virtually ground to a halt as a result of the conflict.
Whilst motorists in wealthier countries are annoyed by higher petrol prices, the world's poorest are being hit particularly hard, according to the Washington DC-based institute.
For economically weak countries, this means that by the end of 2026, a quarter of developing countries will be poorer than in 2019; among low-income countries, the figure is likely to be a third.
