WASHINGTON : The World Bank's chief, David Malpass, has warned that Russia's military invasion of Ukraine might trigger a global recession as food, petrol, and fertiliser prices rise.
He made the statements when speaking at a US business meeting on Wednesday. "Looking at global GDP, it's difficult to see how we can escape a recession right now... The mere thought of oil costs doubling is enough to send the economy into a tailspin "In the latest warning about the mounting possibility that the global economy may contract, he added.
The World Bank slashed its global economic growth prediction for this year by nearly a full percentage point, to 3.2 percent, earlier this month.
Many European countries are still excessively reliant on Russia for oil and gas. Even as Western countries go forward with measures to minimise their reliance on Russian energy, this is the case, he said.
He also said that measures by Russia to reduce gas supplies might cause a "significant slowdown" in the region during a virtual event hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce. Higher energy prices, he claimed, were already dragging on Germany, the largest economy in Europe and the fourth largest in the world.
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