(Photo: Catherine L.Mann, OECD Chief Economist)

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the United Nations have issued an optimistic analysis of global economic prospects.

BIS says the world economy will likely grow 3.5% this year while the OECD projects 3.6% growth next year, the highest rate since 2011 and much higher than 2016’s growth.

The UN predicts the US’s economy will grow 2.4%, China’s 6.4%, and the Eurozone’s 1.8% this year.

All three reports agree that the world economy is facing challenges. The biggest worry is increasing public debt, now at a record 217 trillion USD, while central banks have stopped offering the super low interest rates of recent years.

Another threat is the emergence of protectionism. Since the financial crisis, during the past decade, countries have introduced 3,000 new measures of protectionism. That’s why in 2013 the World Trade Organization approved a trade facilitation agreement which will enter into force this year.

Another issue is that recovery has been uneven and unstable despite the fact that the financial and monetary crisis has been receding for a decade.

In its new report, the OECD says it will probably have to adjust its global economic forecast because of geopolitical shocks and an expected slow-down of the Chinese economy.

The UN report expressed concerns about the economic recovery in South America being much weaker than previously estimated. GDP has stopped growing, even fallen in several African countries. GDP growth in many less developed countries has slowed. Nearly 35% of the population in less developed countries will still be extremely poor in 2030 if there’s no change in income inequality.