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Recession worst is yet to come, IMF warns
15 Jun 2009The worst of the global economic crisis may be yet to come, the head of the International Monetary Fund warned today.
"The Group of Eight stance is that we are beginning to see some green shoots but nevertheless we have to be cautious," Dominique Strauss-Kahn said. "The large part of the worst is not yet behind us."
The pound and the euro both lost more than a cent as investors switched back into the dollar as Strauss-Kahn joined a succession of commentators cautioning on the global economic recovery.
Oil prices dipped as the dollar soared with Brent crude back below $70 after last week's mini rally.
The G8 finance ministers' meeting over the weekend said that it was still too early for countries to be looking at cutting budget deficits or clawing back much of the billions of dollars' support governments have been forced to give to banks.
"The G8, as expected, did not lay out the details of the exit strategies for their crisis policies," said Kosuke Hanao, head of treasury product sales at HSBC in Tokyo.
Forex traders said investors were moving away from the riskier currencies they had been buying all last week on increasing hopes of economic recovery in smaller countries. The CBI's prediction that recovery could start early next year in the UK did little to help the pound which dropped 1.3 cents against the dollar to $1.633. The euro was off 1.07 cents at $1.3893. Brent crude fell 93 cents to $69.99 a barrel.
Reader views (13)
Thanks for being as evasive as ever Keith. No facts, just waffle from you again.
- Dave Davies, Basingstoke, Hants, 15/06/2009 21:03
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WELL DONE KEITH PRICE YOUR ABSOLUTELY RIGHT ABOUT GORGONS FINE LEAD.
WERNT THE GORGONS DEVILISH DICTATORS WHO WOULD LISTEN TO NO REASON.
WOULD HAVE TO ASK CLASSICS SCHOLAR BORIS BUT WASNT ONE OF THEM BEHEADED.
TO SUGGEST THE CAUSE AND THE SOLUTION TO OUR PRESENT DEAF DICTATORS IS BRILLIANT. WELL DONE KEITH.
- Alan Green, Woodford Green, 15/06/2009 16:46
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uk government only acted the day before the halifax was about to collapse. at that point they made a virtue out of an act of total desperation ,claiming it was allpart of a plan. they were warned of this in the summer of 2007,where it was in the public domain all over the world. i read about it in the english edition of the tokyo times,tokyo. GB dithered for 2 years,and was still dithering as the queues were forming to wipe out the insolvent halifax GB is incompetent,delusional,will destroy us all.
- Alan Prince, london united kingdom, 15/06/2009 16:05
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What will happen when all the students and firms closing down with 1000s of lay offs are on job seakers allowance where the hell is the money coming from?"
It comes from their own Nat. Insurance comtribuyions ober many many years. What's wrong with that ?
- Keith Price, Luton, England, 15/06/2009 14:07
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"Which prompt actions are you refering to? Please list them/it."
The same actions that prompted Presidents Obama, Sarkozy, Nerkel and Berlusconi to follow Gorgon's fine lead.
- Keith Price, Luton, England, 15/06/2009 14:05
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What will happen when all the students and firms closing down with 1000s of lay offs are on job seakers allowance where the hell is the money coming from?
- Richard Edmunds, Rayleigh Essex, 15/06/2009 13:31
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McMitty-Brown, it is rumoured, almost choked on his breakfast kippers when he read the latest IMF warning.
- Ted, London, 15/06/2009 11:46
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Keith Price - Which prompt actions are you refering to? Please list them/it.
- David Davies, Basingstoke, Hants, 15/06/2009 11:40
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With the disastrous unemployment figures that have just come out from the Eurozone its no wonder people still take a view that a recovery will be long and slow - bearing in mind that students, sixth formers and school leavers coming out to find a job after the summer September is going to be no party. So a question to Mandleson is does he still think his comments this weekend which amount to that we should be lining up like lemmings to ditch the pound are still valid? I think not and I wouldnt be surprised if the Germans start to demand their Deutschmarks back
- Wallytrader, London, 15/06/2009 11:17
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Gordon Brown's prompt actions will spare us in Britain from the worst effects of this worldwide economic crisis
- Keith Price, Luton, England, 15/06/2009 10:54
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We had Manufacturing we had the credit binge now all that has gone.We look forward to rising interest RATES TAXES INFLATION. CAN ANYONE TELL ME WHERE THE NEW JOBS ARE COMING FROM. I JUST CAN'T SEE PAST THE HYPE.
- Edward, croydon UK, 15/06/2009 10:41
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Are these the same Group of Eight that saw it all coming or do they all work for the FSA?
- Never Eat Tuna Again, London, 15/06/2009 09:49
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more like green weeds than gree shoots
- Antonia H, Newcastle, 15/06/2009 09:47
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