IMF warns of 'wide reverberations' as coronavirus risks job losses, bankruptcies in Middle East | ZAWYA MENA Edition:
As the coronavirus infections continue to spread at alarming levels, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has called on governments in the Middle East for urgent economic policy actions and warned that the health crisis, coupled with the oil price plunge, could significantly drag growth and lead to job losses and bankruptcies.
The key job-rich sectors in the region, including the UAE - home to a huge concentration of expats - have already been impacted by the series of measures to contain the spread of the pandemic, and there will be “wide reverberations” if people lose jobs, and salaries and remittances fall, said Jihad Azour, IMF director of the Middle East and Central Asia on Monday.
“Measures to contain the pandemic’s spread are hurting key job-rich sectors: tourist cancellations in Egypt have reached 80 percent, while hospitality and retail have been affected in the United Arab Emirates and elsewhere,” said Azour.
“Given the large numbers of people employed in the service sector, there will be wide reverberations if unemployment rises and wages and remittances fall,” he added.
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