Pakistan, July 9 -- The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday inched its 2026 global growth forecast lower again to a sluggish 3.0%, warning of ongoing risks linked to the war in the Middle East, trade fragmentation and potential corrections in market expectations for AI.

The global lender said the world economy had dodged a sharper downturn, with demand for AI and other technologies helping to offset a sharp drop in energy supplies as a result of the war. Growth should rebound to 3.4% in 2027, but that is still below the average of 3.5% seen in 2024 and 2025. In April, the IMF had forecast 3.1% growth.

The inflation outlook was less rosy. The IMF raised its 2026 headline inflation forecast by 0.3 percentage points to 4.7% from April...