The global economy is estimated to grow at 6% in 2021 and 4.4% in 2022, said IMF recently.
The current projections for 2021 and 2022 are stronger than those made in October 2020 by fund.
The upward revision reflects additional fiscal support in a few large economies, the anticipated vaccine-powered recovery in the second half of 2021, and continued adaptation of economic activity to subdued mobility, IMF pointed out.
High uncertainty surrounds this outlook, related to the path of the pandemic, the effectiveness of policy support to provide a bridge to vaccine-powered normalisation, and the evolution of financial conditions, the organisation added.
In addition, the outlook presents daunting challenges related to divergences in the speed of recovery both across and within countries and the potential for persistent economic damage from the crisis, said IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath.
Many developing countries are not expected to return to pre-COVID levels of GDP growth until well into 2023, she warned.
The IMF estimated growth of 5.1% for advanced economies this year, with the US expanding by 6.4%.
Emerging and developing Asia, which includes China and India, is projected to see faster economic growth than other regions in both 2021 (8.6%) and 2022 (6.0%).
China will be a key engine driving economic growth this year, with its GDP expected to surge 8.4%, an upward revision of 0.3 of a point due mainly to an improved external environment.Â
India is expected to expand by 12.5% in 2021. The number represents an upward revision of 1 percentage point and a dramatic correction from a 8% plunge last year.
The ASEAN-5 — Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam — are projected to collectively grow 4.9% in 2021 and 6.1% in 2022.
The IMF cautioned that its projections hinge on vaccine effectiveness and the extent of inoculations worldwide, assuming that vaccine protection and improved testing and tracing could reduce local coronavirus transmissions to low levels everywhere by end-2022.
