International Air Passenger Transport in the Future

World stock markets fell further in mid-June 2009, when the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) both announced that the recovery from the current economic malaise would be longer rather than shorter. The World Bank stated that the world economy would contract 2.9%, compared with a previous forecast of a 1.7% decline. The Bank appears to be more pessimistic than the International Monetary Fund. The IMF is forecasting a global contraction of only 1.3% this year and growth of 2.4% in 2010. Furthermore, the World Bank cut its forecast for the US this year, calling for a 3% drop in the world’s largest economy, after predicting a 2.4% contraction in March. Japan’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is predicted to shrink by 6.8%, more than the previous prediction of a 5.3% decline. The Euro area’s economy may shrink 4.5%, compared with the previous estimate of a 2.7% contraction. Global trade may drop by 9.7%, compared with a March forecast of a 6.1% decline.