Emerging economies holding back global recovery: OECD

PARIS, Mar 11 (Reuters): The recovery in developed economies is on track although slowing activity in big emerging markets means global growth will be only moderate at best in the near term, the OECD said on Tuesday.

Exceptionally bad winter weather in North America and a sales tax hike in Japan are also disrupting the pace of recovery, the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said.

Against that backdrop, the OECD urged the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan to keep up their monetary stimulus, if not increase it, while it said the U.S. Federal Reserve was right to begin winding down its bond-buying programme.

"The gradual recovery in the advanced economies is encouraging, even if temporary factors have pushed down growth rates in the early months of this year, while the slowdown in emerging economies is likely to be a drag on global growth," OECD acting chief economist Rintaro Tamaki said in a statement.