This week, we examine the January 2026 edition of the bi-annual World Economic Outlook (WEO) report published by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the outset of this year’s World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
For perspective, the WEF is the largest global gathering of world leaders and business executives, providing an avenue for discussing and reshaping economic, political, trade, and business issues with far-reaching implications for the global economy.
According to the latest WEO report, titled “Global Economy: Steady amid Divergent Forces”, the IMF projects a resilient global economic performance in 2026, revising the growth outlook upward to 3.3% from 3.1% in October 2025 while leaving the 2027 projection unchanged at 3.2%.
The improved global growth outlook for 2026 is underpinned by what the IMF termed a “balancing of divergent forces.”
Headwinds from shifting trade policies are being offset by tailwinds from surging technology-related investment, including artificial intelligence (AI), led by North America and Asia.
