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World trade growth set to slow to 1.9% this year, Iran war may weigh ...
The WTO warns that energy price shocks from the Middle East conflict could reduce global trade growth to 1.4%, threatening food security and supply chains.
- On March 19, 2026, the World Trade Organization said world trade growth will slow to 1.9% this year from 4.6% in 2025, with a downside scenario of 1.4% if energy prices stay high.
- Amid the escalating Middle East conflict, Tehran has launched attacks that nearly halted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, with traffic collapsing from 138 commercial vessels per day to almost zero.
- Services trade now faces a 0.7-point drop from 4.8% to 4.1% because of shipping and flight disruptions, according to the report.
- Sustained high energy prices would shave 0.3 percentage points off 2026 GDP and cut trade forecasts by 0.5 points, while Brent North Sea crude trades at over $112 per barrel; net fuel-importing regions like Asia and Europe face sharpest import declines.
- Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala said the outlook reflects the resilience of global trade and urged predictable policies ahead of next week's Cameroon conference.
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42 Articles
42 Articles
Coverage Details
Total News Sources42
Leaning Left4Leaning Right8Center9Last UpdatedBias Distribution43% Center
Bias Distribution
- 43% of the sources are Center
43% Center
L 19%
C 43%
R 38%
Factuality
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