IMF raises 2026 global growth forecast to 3.1%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday raised its forecast for global economic growth in 2026 by 0.1 percentage point to 3.1% from its July projection.

In its latest World Economic Outlook, titled "Resilience Under Strain, Urgent Choices," the IMF projected global growth to slow from 3.5% in 2025 to 3.1% in 2026 before picking up to 3.4% in 2027.

The 2027 forecast is unchanged from July but 0.2 percentage points higher than the April projection.

Growth in advanced economies is projected to reach 2.1% in 2026 before slowing to 1.8% in 2027.

In emerging market and developing economies, growth is forecast to slow to 3.7% in 2026 before rebounding to 4.4% in 2027.

The IMF said the global economy is neither simply slowing nor accelerating, but having growth reallocated according to each country's exposure to the war-driven energy shock and to AI-related demand.

Economies lifted by the AI investment boom are helping offset the economic drag on those hit by the Middle East conflict.

IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Monday, at the annual IMF and World Bank Group Annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, that accelerating investment in AI infrastructure was a key factor keeping global economic growth near 3%.

The report also projected global headline inflation to rise from 4.1% in 2025 to 4.7% in 2026 before easing to 4.1% in 2027.