"Trade will continue to expand but at a more moderate pace than previously forecast. The WTO anticipates growth in merchandise trade volume of 3.9% in 2018, with trade expansion slowing further to 3.7% in 2019," the WTO announced in a press release.
The organization noted that it had decided to downgrade its outlook for global trade as "some of the downside risks identified in the April press release have since materialized, most notably a rise in actual and proposed trade measures targeting a variety of exports from large economies."
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The statement was made following US President Donald Trump's announcement earlier this week that the world trading system needed to be immediately reformed. In addition, Trump accused several World Trade Organization members of breaching every principle on which the organization was founded.
