The UN DESA Annual Highlights report is a tool to communicate the contributions of the Department to the realization of internationally agreed development goals and shared social, economic, and environmental aspirations. It showcases the Department’s role in gauging trends, building capacities, and shaping solutions. UN DESA Highlights 2025 covers activities over the period of the 79th Session of the General Assembly (September 2024 – August 2025) and reflects the Department’s response to the set priorities and expressed needs of Member States. Seven (7) thematic chapters showcase how UN DESA put its expertise to the task of supporting Member State efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda…

The global economy is expected to experience subdued growth in the coming months amid a challenging trade environment and heightened macroeconomic uncertainties. The world economy is projected to grow by 2.5 per cent in both 2025 and 2026 — below the 2.8 per cent recorded in 2024 and the pre-pandemic average of 3.2 per cent (2010–2019). The 2025 forecast has been raised by 0.1 percentage points since May, while the 2026 outlook is unchanged, with both remaining well below expectations at the start of the year. The modest upgrade to the 2025 outlook reflects stronger-than expected frontloading of economic activity ahead of new U.S. tariffs, lower effective U.S. tariff rates than initially…

The world economy is at a precarious moment. Heightened trade tensions, along with policy uncertainty, have significantly weakened the global economic outlook for 2025. Higher tariffs—resulting in a significant increase in the effective tariff rate in the United States of America—are likely to strain global supply chains, drive up production costs and delay critical investment decisions, while also contributing to financial market volatility. Global economic growth is now projected to slow to 2.4 per cent in 2025, down from 2.9 per cent in 2024, and 0.4 percentage points below the January forecast. The downward revisions in growth forecasts are broad-based, affecting both developed and…

Global economic growth is projected to remain at 2.8 per cent in 2025, unchanged from 2024, according to the United Nations flagship report, World Economic Situation and Prospects (WESP) 2025. While the global economy has demonstrated resilience, withstanding a series of mutually reinforcing shocks, growth remains below the pre-pandemic average of 3.2 per cent, constrained by weak investment, sluggish productivity growth, and high debt levels.

The report notes that lower inflation and ongoing monetary easing in many economies could provide a modest boost to global economic activity in 2025. However, uncertainty still looms large, with risks stemming from geopolitical conflicts,…