IMF holds S. Korea growth at 1.9%, raises inflation to 2.5%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday kept its 2026 growth forecast for South Korea unchanged at 1.9 percent despite the Middle East crisis, the finance ministry said. While keeping its outlook unchanged for Asia's fourth-largest economy, the institution revised down its growth projection for the global economy by 0.2 percentage point from its January forecast to 3.1 percent, according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance. "Despite the impact of the Middle East situation, the country's growth outlook remained unchanged on the back of strong exports and offsetting effects from a supplementary budget," the ministry said, citing the IMF's latest World Economic Outlook report. "The government will maintain the current emergency response system amid heightened uncertainties and swiftly implement measures to stabilize prices, supply chains and financial markets," it added. As for prices, the IMF raised its inflation forecast for South Korea this year by 0.7 percentage point to 2.5 percent, citing rising global oil prices due to supply disruptions stemming from the Middle East cris

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