WASHINGTON: The International Monetary Fund IMF said Tuesday that the Federal Reserve should hold off on raising interest rates if Britain’s vote to break with the European Union results in slower US growth.
In its annual report on the US economy, the International Monetary Fund said it only expects a small Brexit impact on US growth, which it forecasts at a sluggish 2.2 percent this year and picking up in 2017.
“But because of uncertainty about the economic fallout, risks to the outlook appear now as skewed to the downside,” the report said.
“Should downside risks materialize, interest rate increases should be delayed in line with a data-dependent approach.”
Nigel Chalk, the IMF Western Hemisphere Department deputy director, said the Fund was generally optimistic about the US economy in the near term.
