Mideast Oil Importers Face Economic Slowdown
From CBS News
Middle Eastern countries without significant oil resources face a sharp slowdown in economic growth as the effects of the Arab Spring reverberate across the region, the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday.
In a twice-yearly report, the IMF cut its economic growth forecast for the Mideast’s oil importing countries – including Egypt and Tunisia – to just 1.9 percent this year. That is down from an earlier IMF forecast of 2.3 percent and well below the more than 4 percent growth in 2010.
The Washington-based fund predicts their growth in 2012 will also be weaker than anticipated, coming in at around 3 percent.
