Governments must defeat a rising tide of protectionism to prevent a further slowdown in global growth, the head of the International Monetary Fund has said. Christine Lagarde said policies that restrict trade were a form of “economic malpractice” that would choke off growth, hit jobs and reduce wages. Speaking in Chicago, she urged governments to act quickly to lower trade barriers to increase global growth and boost the incomes of the poorest. Lagarde said: “For the past several years, the global recovery has been weak and fragile, and this continues to be the case today. We continue to face the problem of global growth being too low for too long, benefiting too few.

Source: The Guardian September 28, 2016 18:54 UTC