MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Moody's Investors Service international credit rating agency has forecast diminishing global growth in 2016, citing the slump in commodity prices and weaker emerging market performance as the main causes of the slowdown.
"The global recovery has weakened further and the outlook across countries remains uneven and largely weaker than in the previous two decades. Global trade remains subdued, while spillovers from emerging markets shocks to financial markets globally have increased substantially," Moody's Associate Managing Director Elena Duggar was quoted as saying in the statement.
Forecasts for growth in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Turkey have been lowered by the agency, while a further slowdown in China was designated as the main downside risk to the global economy this year. China's annual growth is expected to reach 6.3 percent by the end of 2016, compared to the current 6.9 percent, the statement noted.
Commodity prices have been declining since mid-2014, falling some 30 percent throughout 2015, International Monetary Fund figures showed. Most non-energy commodity prices are expected to fall further in 2016, according to the World Bank's Commodity Markets Outlook.
