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IMF Forecasts Stable, “Underwhelming” Growth in October World Economic Outlook

Since April of this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected a consistent picture of the global economy, forecasting GDP growth of 3.2% in 2024 and 2025. However, in its October 2024 World Economic Outlook (WEO): Policy Pivot, Rising Threats, the IMF reports revisions to the outlook for a number of economies as well as changes in policy the institution deems necessary for “a smooth landing” and to increase growth potential. 

IMF Projects Converging Growth in July’s World Economic Outlook Update

In its July 2024 World Economic Outlook (WEO) Update: The Global Economy in a Sticky Spot, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has stuck with its global growth estimates as forecast in April’s WEO: Steady but Slow: Resilience Amid Divergence, with GDP predicted to gain 3.2% in 2024 and 3.3% in 2025. Activity varied across economies at the beginning of 2024, with many countries experiencing higher growth than had been expected, owing in part to increased world trade, attributable to strong technology exports from Asia. Domestic consumption ramped up in China, and the services sector improved in Europe. In contrast, curbed consumption and negative net trade slowed US growth, which had been outperforming expectations. In Japan, a New Year’s Day earthquake caused a short period of supply disruption and the shutdown of automobile production. 

PAI 2024: The Process Analytical Instrument Market Report

PAI/2024 is the latest edition of the PAI report series, providing worldwide product forecasts for 2022-2028 (by year). The product forecasts are shown by major end-user market segment and by geographic region. The report identifies the leading suppliers in each of the technology categories including liquid analyzers, photometers/spectroscopy, oxygen, gas chromatography, mass spectrometers, moisture analyzers, advanced analyzers and other continuous process analyzers. In 2023, the process analytical instruments (PAI) market accounted for $5.9 billion and is experiencing robust growth, fueled by new hydrocarbon processing projects, particularly in Asia-Pacific. Sustainability, carbon capture and alternative fuels continue to be industry drivers for analyzer companies.

2024 TDA Instrument Industry Outlook Report Now Available

Each successive year since the coronavirus pandemic, it seems we wonder if this will be the year in which conditions return to some approximation of normal following the economic turmoil COVID-19 caused. Although each year so far, the answer has been no, it appears that each year has been marked by incremental shifts toward equilibrium. In 2023, supply chains, shipping costs, and, delivery times largely returned to their prepandemic statuses, and a global recession seems to have been averted. However, high inflation, while falling, continues to contribute to weakened consumer sentiment, and fiscal policy in some economies still reflects the detrimental effects of the pandemic.  

TDA’s 2023 Outlook Mid-Year Update Available

The major factors shaping economic conditions for 2023 are similar to those in the year prior with recovery—from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine—on the distant horizon. Persistent inflation continues to reduce growth in the analytical instruments industry as customers have less cash available to spend.

IMF Cites Slight Improvement in July’s World Economic Outlook Update

Despite the May declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) that COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency and the resolution of many supply chain and shipping problems, global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has slowed, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its July 2023 World Economic Outlook (WEO) Update: Near-Term Resilience, Persistent Challenges. The increases in central bank policy rates enacted to combat inflation have hindered economic activity, resulting in weak global growth.

IMF Downgrades Its Outlook for the Global Economy

The economic fallout from the war in Ukraine will reach far beyond than the countries involved. In its April 2022 World Economic Outlook (WEO): War Sets Back the Global Recovery, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cited the conflict as the primary reason for the slowing of global growth the institution now predicts.

Federal Budget for R&D Finally Passed

On March 15th, 2022—nearly six months late—President Biden signed the FY2022 spending bill. Compared with the previous fiscal year’s appropriations, total federal funding for R&D increased 7.1% to $169 billion. Although many agencies were allocated much less than the Biden administration had requested, all science agencies received increases in funding.

Opportunities Soar as Cannabis Use Climbs

A confluence of factors over the last couple of years has led to a surge in cannabis use in the US and beyond. For one, the cannabis market has been booming for the past several years, as individual states in the US (the largest geographic market for cannabis) have increasingly legalized adult-use and medical cannabis. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has boosted consumption of the drug in North America.