DAVOS, SWITZERLAND —
In October, WTO economists predicted a 1% increase in global merchandise trade volumes for 2023, down sharply from the previous estimate of 3.4%.
Director general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the WTO was not revising down its projection. The next assessment will be in April, she said.
World trade is thought likely to have lost momentum in the second half of 2022 and to remain subdued in 2023 as multiple shocks weigh on the global economy.
Those impacts include rampant inflation that hikes prices, currency devaluations that increase goods costs, supply disruptions preventing timely delivery of goods to market, and the disruptions caused by conflicts, including Russia's attack upon Ukraine.
