Global growth to continue with 'certain level' of slowdown

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BASEL, Switzerland, Mar 11 (AFP): The global economy is continuing to grow but there is-as expected-a "certain level" of slowdown ahead, European Central Bank chief and Group of Ten (G10) spokesman Jean-Claude Trichet said yesterday.
"I will not depart from present (IMF) projections at the global level. There is an ongoing growth with a certain level of slowing down," Trichet told reporters after a meeting of the G10 group of central banks at the Bank for International Settlements here.
Emerging markets are showing particular resilience, he noted.
"It is true for financial markets in emerging countries and also true for their real economy," Trichet said.
The rising price of food "has a particular impact on consumers... we have to remain alert on that particular point," Trichet said.
In Asia, the soaring price of rice has triggered a supply and demand crunch that is hurting some of the continent's neediest nations, forcing them to spend more on imports.
For the likes of Thailand and Vietnam, the world's two biggest exporters of the grain, the rising demand is a money-spinner with rice now selling at more than 500 dollars a tonne in Bangkok and nearly as much in Hanoi.
But from Bangladesh to the Philippines, from India to Indonesia, the squeeze is bad news as they seek to balance cost with the imperatives of feeding hungry populations and averting social chaos.
Trichet said the price rises "are the most recent materialisations of a risk that was mentioned for several months but that is materialising in a fashion that is quite impressive."
Inflation also remains a major concern for the whole global economy, notably the high price of food and commodities, he added.
Inflation reached 3.2 per cent in the Eurozone in February, well above the ECB's preferred target of just under 2.0 per cent.
In the United States, inflation reached 3.7 per cent in January on an annual basis, its highest level for nearly two decades. The International Monetary Fund expects global GDP to grow by 4.1 per cent in 2008, down 0.3 percentage points from an earlier forecast.
Speaking in his capacity as ECB head, Trichet also said the Frankfurt-based bank is concerned about "excessive exchange rate moves."
"Excessive volatility and disorderly movements in exchange rates are undesirable for economic growth," the ECB chief said.
"We have noted with extreme attention the statement by the US authorities reaffirming that a strong dollar is in the interest of the US economy," Trichet added.
The dollar slid Monday close to record lows against the euro and fell heavily versus the yen as the US currency suffered from recession fears in the United States, dealers in London said.
In morning trade, the euro rose to 1.5377 dollars from 1.5359 dollars in New York late Friday, when it had struck an all-time high point of 1.5464.
Jitters about the health of the American economy grew Friday after official data showed a loss of 63,000 jobs in February, the steepest drop since March 2003, defying market forecasts for a gain of about 25,000 jobs.