Washington: The annual Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF) kicked off Monday amidst global fears over the impact of US tariffs on the world economy and commerce. President Donald Trump announced earlier this month new US tariffs on various countries; however, most were suspended for 90 days after the announcement steered controversy. According to Kuwait News Agency, the first session of the meetings touched on several issues including expanding energy access in Africa and the impact of debts on growth and financial stability of companies in a world plagued by increasing interest rates. The State of Kuwait, represented by Finance Ministry Undersecretary Aseel Al-Munifi, is taking part in the event, which is witnessing wide-ranging participation from government representatives, civil society members, business personnel, as well as other officials and organizations. The IMF issued on the first day of the meetings a report on geopolitical crises and their effect on asse ts and financial stability. The IMF warned that geopolitical hazards were still high, leading to increasing fears regarding their impending impact on the stability of macroeconomy and finances. Such dangers reduce cross-border commerce and investments, creating a sense of uncertainty as well as redistributing the flow of capital, disturbing supply chains, and negatively impacting demand, added the report. The IMF report suggested that financial institutes and auditing bodies should allocate enough resources to identify threats, measure them, and find suitable ways to manage them. Emerging and developing economies and markets must increase efforts in developing financial markets, creating enough space to handle general monetary policies, in addition to creating international reserves to lessen the impact of geopolitical shifts. The second day of the Spring Meetings would see the IMF issuing another report on the impact of the new US tariffs on the world. The IMF previously described the tariffs as a clear ex ample of the dangers facing international expectations amidst slow overall growth. Meanwhile, during the opening press conference of the Spring Meetings, President of the World Bank Group Ajay Banga revealed that the WB helped to create job opportunities for some 2.1 billion youths eager to join the workforce in several developing countries next year. However, uncertainties in the business environment and economies might affect jobs, he asserted, adding that developing economies were playing a more central role in global trade compared to two decades ago.
