IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva urged international cooperation to tackle multiple risks, including rapid AI advances and a prolonged Middle East war, at the IMF-World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok. The IMF slightly raised its 2026 global growth forecast to 3.1%, well below the historical average, while warning of risks from a potential end to the AI investment boom, rising debt and the Middle East conflict. The Fund said that without the US-Israeli-led war against Iran and Tehran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which caused a major energy shock, AI would have fuelled much stronger growth. US Treasury Under Secretary Erin Browne pushed back, citing record US stock highs and strong US output, and urged the IMF to take a more balanced view.
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Original headline: International Business : IMF chief urges co - operation on AI and war risks
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