LONDON (Bloomberg) - The head of the World Bank has said he’s worried that a slowdown in the global economy this year could be “long-lasting.”
“This period of slow growth for the world may last into 2023-24, and that’s a concern,” President David Malpass said in an interview on Sky News, according to a transcript provided by the network.
Malpass said persistent inflation and a shortage of new investment were stumbling blocks. “As you look one year ahead and two years ahead, it’s hard to see that there will be a strong recovery,” he said.
He urged governments providing financial relief - to help people cope with energy price shocks, for example - to not make the payments open-ended.
“When governments do subsidize their citizens, which are politically necessary and attractive, they need to have it be time-bound and targeted,” Malpass said.
“Rather than giving benefits to everyone for the foreseeable future, do it for six months for the narrowest group that is possible that is hurt by the higher prices that are occurring now.”