{"id":32640,"date":"2026-05-20T10:55:53","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T08:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/phoneenglish.es\/blog\/?p=32640"},"modified":"2026-05-21T06:13:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T04:13:47","slug":"un-lowers-forecast-for-global-economic-growth","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/phoneenglish.es\/blog\/2026\/05\/un-lowers-forecast-for-global-economic-growth\/","title":{"rendered":"UN Lowers Forecast for Global Economic Growth\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

B2 – Upper Intermediate<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent global finance story reports that the United Nations has lowered its 2026 global economic growth forecast from 2.7% to 2.5% because of rising oil prices and instability in the Middle East. Economists warn that higher energy costs could increase inflation worldwide and slow down consumer spending and investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read the article to learn why countries that are heavily dependent on imported fuel may be affected the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/un-global-economic-forecast-growth-inflation-oil-e79c64aeb599030c308e6c93eaf9b350<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vocabulary Questions:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. What does “plunge”<\/strong> mean? “Economic growth in the region is projected to plunge<\/strong> from 3.6% in 2025 to 1.4% in 2026, \u201cdriven not only by the energy shock but also by direct infrastructure damage and severe disruptions to oil production, trade and tourism.\u201d<\/em> Use it in a sentence. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. What does “strategic reserve”<\/strong> mean? “In Asia, the U.N. said China\u2019s diversified energy mix, sizable strategic reserves <\/strong>and government actions are providing a buffer, so its economic growth is only expected to slow from 5% in 2025 to 4.6% this year.” <\/em>Use it in a sentence.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. What does “resilient” <\/strong>mean? “In the United States, the economy is expected to remain \u201ccomparatively resilient<\/strong>\u201d with 2% growth forecast this year, broadly similar to 2025, it said.”<\/em> Use it in a sentence. <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Discussion Questions:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. How do you think rising oil prices affect everyday people around the world?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Why do you think global economic growth is slowing down this year?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. In your opinion, which countries are most vulnerable to higher fuel costs? Why?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. Have you personally noticed any increase in prices related to fuel or transportation recently?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. What do you think governments can do to help people during economic slowdowns and inflation?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      B2 – Upper Intermediate A recent global finance story reports that the United Nations has lowered its 2026 global economic growth forecast from 2.7% to 2.5% because of rising oil prices and instability in the Middle East. Economists warn that higher energy costs could increase inflation worldwide and slow down consumer spending and investment. Read […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[291,125,292,289,293],"class_list":["post-32640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-homework","tag-b2-upper-intermediate","tag-economy","tag-first-certificate-fce","tag-reading","tag-text"],"yoast_head":"\nUN Lowers Forecast for Global Economic Growth\u00a0 | phone english blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/phoneenglish.es\/blog\/2026\/05\/un-lowers-forecast-for-global-economic-growth\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UN Lowers Forecast for Global Economic Growth\u00a0 | phone english blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"B2 – Upper Intermediate A recent global finance story reports that the United Nations has lowered its 2026 global economic growth forecast from 2.7% to 2.5% because of rising oil prices and instability in the Middle East. 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