IMF lifts 2026 global growth to 3.1% as AI spending offsets war shock
What's new: The fund warned 40% of jobs could be reshaped or cut by AI, even as energy constraints and inflation cloud 2027.
The International Monetary Fund raised its 2026 global growth forecast to 3.1% from 3.0%, saying an AI-driven investment boom is helping the world economy absorb higher energy costs tied to the Middle East war. Speaking in Bangkok at the IMF and World Bank annual meetings, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva called AI a transformative force already delivering a demand and investment shock, with especially large benefits for Asia. The fund kept its 2027 growth forecast at 3.4% and projected 2027 inflation at 4.1%, above its July estimate. It also warned the gains come with major disruption: IMF research suggests AI could augment, downgrade or eliminate about 40% of jobs, rising to 60% in advanced economies.