AI boom sustains Korea's growth despite global headwinds: IMF official
BANGKOK — Korea appears to be weathering global economic headwinds thanks to the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, with the technology investment cycle unlikely to lose steam in the near term, a senior official at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said. "Trade tensions among countries are putting negative pressure on the global economy," Choi Ji-young, executive director of the IMF Asia…
Bangkok - Korea is seemingly resilient to global economic challenges, according to a senior International Monetary Fund (IMF) official. The country's booming artificial intelligence (AI) sector seems to be the key driver, with investment in the technology expected to remain robust in the near term. Trade tensions and geopolitical conflicts, such as the Middle East crisis and the Russia-Ukraine war, are causing some uncertainty in the global economy, says Choi Ji-young, an executive director at the IMF's Asia and Pacific Constituency Office.
The official was in Thailand to attend the 2026 Annual Meetings of the IMF and World Bank Group. Despite these challenges, the IMF has recently revised upwards its growth forecast for South Korea, predicting a rate of 3.3 percent for 2026. This projection was boosted by a surge in semiconductor exports, fueled by strong demand for AI infrastructure. This figure represents a 0.7 percentage point increase from the IMF's July forecast.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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