The World Bank released on January 10, 2023 its “Global Economic Prospects – January 2023” report in which it estimated world economic growth to have dropped from around 5.9% in 2021 to 2.9% in 2022, projecting growth to attain 1.7% in 2023 (1.3 percentage points less than the June 2022 forecasts). Said growth estimates reflect global monetary policy tightening which aim at curbing high levels of inflation, worsening financial conditions, and disruptions from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The report noted, however, that the aforementioned contractionary monetary policy has resulted in dire global financial conditions which, in turn, have taken their negative toll on economic activity. According to the report, asset prices have been declining, investment growth has weakened considerably, and housing markets in several countries are quickly deteriorating. Furthermore, the World Bank commented that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has sent shockwaves all over the world, particularly with regards to energy and some commodity markets. In this vein, the United States, the Euro area, and China are experiencing a period of noticeable economic downturn which weighed negatively on some Emerging Markets & Developing Economies (EMDEs). The report also revealed that global inflation has reached new heights due to supply shocks, disruptions to the global supply chain and availability of key commodities, with some countries also suffering from heavy currency depreciations against the US Dollar and tight labor market conditions. From another standpoint, the World Bank expected growth in advanced economies to drop from 5.3% in 2021 to 2.5% in 2022 and 0.5% in 2023 and to rebound to 1.6% in 2024. The report further revealed that advanced economies are experiencing deteriorating economic conditions, high levels of inflation, and rapid monetary policy tightening. The report added that the Euro area’s gas supply was interrupted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine which has increased energy prices and inflation, and impeded industrial production. Similarly, the World Bank projected economic growth in EMDEs to decrease from 6.7% in 2021 to 3.4% in each of 2022 and 2023. According to the World Bank, economic activity in EMDEs has sharply declined in 2022 amid tighter global financial conditions, high inflation, and spillovers from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. On the regional front, the World Bank estimated economic growth in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region at 3.7% in 2021, with expectations of a growth of 5.7% in 2022, and a forecasted growth of 3.5% in 2023 and 2.7% in 2024. The World Bank commented that the MENA region’s growth in 2022 is the highest in a decade and can be attributed to the profits generated by oil exporters from the frantic increases in oil & gas prices and from increased production. The report noted, however, that the region is still characterized by diverging economic conditions, elevated poverty levels in some countries, and low labor productivity growth. The World Bank commented that growth in oil exporting countries was estimated to have increased from 3.3% in 2021 to 6.1% in 2022 with projections to drop to 3.3% in 2023 and 2.3% in 2024. On the other hand, growth in oil importing economies was estimated to have dropped from 5.4% in 2021 to 4.1% in 2022 with a growth forecast of 4.1% in 2023 and 4.3% in 2024. According to the World Bank, oil importing economies have been negatively affected by the economic slowdown in the European Union, to which around 50% of goods are exported. As for inflation, oil importers saw double-digit inflation in several countries mainly due to higher food and energy prices, while inflation in oil exporting countries remained below the global average as a result of fixed exchange rates and fuel subsidies. On a local basis, the World Bank projected Lebanon’s real GDP to have contracted by 21.4% in 2020, 7.0% in 2021 and by 5.4% in 2022. The report noted that forecasts beyond the year 2022 for Lebanon were removed due to “a high degree of uncertainty”. According to the World Bank, the Lebanese population is suffering from food supply disruptions, commenting that the country’s outlook remains bleak. It is also worth mentioning that the Lebanese economy was severely hit by the acute energy prices and slowing global growth that could backfire on the travel and tourism industry. Furthermore, real growth figures for Lebanon were revised from those published in the June 2022 issue of the Global Economic Prospects report in which the World Bank had estimated economic contractions of 21.4% for 2020, 10.5% for 2021 and 6.5% for 2022.