IMF Warns Middle East War Deepens Inequality, Trims Growth Outlook

The International Energy Agency (IEA) says a tanker rate boom could outlive the Middle East war.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that wars across the Middle East are deepening global inequality. The IMF trimmed its Latin America growth outlook, stating the region misses out on the AI boom and is hit by the energy price shock from the Middle East war. The IMF also cut its Middle East growth outlook due to disruptions.

A former NATO commander warned that Britain should put boots on the ground in the Middle East to defeat Iran's Houthi rebels before global trade collapses. Yemen's Houthi rebels have transformed over the last decade into Iran's most potent ally in the region and a central opponent of the United States and its allies. Escalating missile and drone attacks by the Iran-backed group have caused oil prices to surge.

Houthi rebels reported airstrikes in Yemen. Economic growth in the eurozone is expected to slow to 1.1% in 2026 as Russia’s war and the Middle East crisis drive up energy prices, the IMF warned in its World Economic Outlook.