Rating agency Moody’s Investors Service has slashed India’s growth forecast for the second time in a month. The agency has projected India’s growth rate to be 5.3 percent for 2020. Earlier, on February 17, it had reduced it from 6.6 percent to 5.4 percent.
The rating agency estimates that corona virus outbreaks will reduce domestic demand worldwide. Moody’s said in its Global Macro Outlook for March that the outbreak of the virus has spread rapidly in several major economies outside China. Even if it is controlled, it will affect global economic activity in the second quarter of this year.
Moody’s has slashed China’s growth forecast for 2020, from 5.2 per cent to 4.8 per cent, in addition to India. At the same time, the growth rate estimate of the US has been reduced from 1.7 percent to 1.5 percent. Moody’s has projected G20 countries to grow at 2.1 in 2020, which is 0.3 per cent lower than earlier estimates.
