WASHINGTON (AP) — The head of the International Monetary Fund said Thursday that the world economy has proven surprisingly resilient in the face of higher interest rates and the shock of war in Ukraine and Gaza, but "there is plenty to worry about,'' including stubborn inflation and rising levels of government debt.
“ Inflation is down but not gone,'' Kristalina Georgieva told reporters at the spring meeting of the IMF and its sister organization, the World Bank. In the United States, she said, “the flipside'' of unexpectedly strong economic growth is that it ”taking longer than expected'' to bring inflation down.
Georgieva also warned that government debts are growing around the world. Last year, they ticked up to 93% of global economic output — up from 84% in 2019 before the response to the COVID-19 pandemic pushed governments to spend more to provide healthcare and economic assistance. She urged countries to more efficiently collect taxes and spend public money. "In a world where the crises keep coming, countries must urgently build fiscal resilience to be prepared for the next shock,'' she said.
On Tuesday, the IMF said it expects to the global economy to grow 3.2% this year, a modest upgrade from the forecast it made in January and unchanged from 2023. It also expects a third straight year of 3.2% growth in 2025.
The world economy has proven unexpectedly sturdy, but it remains weak by historical standards: Global growth averaged 3.8% from 2000 to 2019.
One reason for sluggish global growth, Georgieva said, is disappointing improvement in productivity. She said that countries had not found ways to most efficiently match workers and technology and that years of low interest rates — that only ended after inflation picked up in 2021 — had allowed "firms that were not competitive to stay afloat.''
She also cited in many countries an aging "labor force that doesn't bring the dynamism'' needed for faster economic growth.
The United States has been an exception to the weak productivity gains over the past year. Compared to Europe, Georgieva said, America makes it easier for businesses to bring innovations to the marketplace and has lower energy costs.
She said countries could help their economies by slashing bureaucratic red tape and getting more women into the job market.
FILE - Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, IMF, speaks in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 17, 2024. During a IMF and World Bank meeting Thursday, April 18, 2024, Georgieva said the world economy has proven surprisingly resilient in the face of higher interest rates and the shock of war in Ukraine and Gaza, but "there is plenty to worry about,'' including stubborn inflation and rising levels of government debt. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)
In a mad mix of game-show glitter and marketing flash, Airbnb is offering customers a chance to spend a night in a Paris museum, stay in houses mocked up to look like movie settings, or sleep surrounded by eight Ferrari racing cars.
Those and other chimerical listings are part of a splashy new campaign by the short-term rental giant, which wants to portray itself as a company that sells experiences and not just alternatives to staying in a hotel.
CEO Brian Chesky announced the 11 temporary listings — Airbnb is calling them “icons” — at an event Wednesday in Los Angeles.
The San Francisco company hit upon the idea for the publicity caper after seeing the response to a Barbie-themed house in Malibu, California, it listed last year in conjunction with a hit movie about the Mattel fashion doll. The formula is the same: link a promotion to a pop-culture product, celebrity or event.
And don't be boring.
“We're not historically known for making anything. We're a platform,” Chesky said in an interview. “I think it's really great to show what it looks like when suddenly you can step into our vision and our imagination. I think it's going to keep Airbnb top of mind."
Unlike the rental platform's typical listed properties, Airbnb is practically giving away its “icons.” Chesky said the company will invite people to fill out a profile and explain why they want one of the listings, and Airbnb will pick about 4,000 winners over the course of the year. He said winners will be able to book the featured properties or events for free or at prices under $100.
One of the exotic opportunities is an overnight stay at the Musee d’Orsay in Paris. Chesky said Airbnb recruited Mathieu Lehanneur — he designed the torch for this summer's Paris Olympics — to convert the clock room atop the museum into a bedroom.
“By the way, the torch is in the bedroom with you,” Chesky said. “You get the entire museum all to yourself. This is literally night at the museum. It gets even better because you step outside the bedroom on to the terrace, you have the single best seat in the house for the opening ceremony" of the Olympics, which will take place on the River Seine.
For those preferring a U.S. setting, Airbnb is listing a house in New Mexico detailed to look like the one from the 2009 Pixar-Disney animated film, “Up." Chesky said Airbnb paid to build the house from scratch and attach 8,000 balloons to mimic the helium-filled ones the central character in the movie uses to make the house fly.
The Airbnb version won't fly, but Chesky said guests will be able to watch a crane lift the New Mexico house 50 feet off the ground.
“I think we maybe won’t have them inside the house when we lift it, just for safety reasons,” he said.
Some of the listings will be one-time events, including the sleepover at the the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, Italy, a living room performance by rapper Doja Cat, and an evening with comedian Kevin Hart in his members-only lounge. The “Up” house and a mansion in New York made to look like the one in “X-Men” Marvel comics will be available for three or four months. A Minneapolis house owned by Prince that was featured in the film “Purple Rain” will be available for a year, according to Airbnb.
The company won't say how much it spent to acquire rights, dress up the properties, and pay the celebrities involved. Airbnb made a $4.8 billion profit last year and ended 2023 with nearly $6.9 billion in cash. Enough to repeat the “icons” campaign.
“These 11 are the beginning," Chesky said. “We have a lot more under development.”
FILE - Sebastian Vettel steers the Ferrari Formula One SF70H racer at the Ferrari Fiorano private test track in Maranello, Italy, Feb. 24, 2017. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including a night at the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, in a splashy new marketing campaign. (AP Photo/Marco Vasini, File)
FILE - Comedian Kevin Hart is seen at an NBA basketball game on Oct. 26, 2023, in Los Angeles. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including a one-time evening with comedian Kevin Hart in his members-only lounge, in a splashy new marketing campaign. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
The house in Minneapolis which appeared in musician Prince's film "Purple Rain" is shown on April 1, 2017. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including the Minneapolis house, for a limited time in a splashy new marketing campaign. (AP Photo/Jim Mone, File)
FILE - Doja Cat arrives at The Daily Front Row's 8th annual Fashion Los Angeles Awards, April 28, 2024, at The Beverly Hills Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including a one-time living room performance by rapper Doja Cat, in a splashy new marketing campaign. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - The Orsay museum in Paris is shown on Oct. 16, 2014. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including the Orsay, for a limited time in a splashy new marketing campaign. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)
FILE - A visitor looks through the clock of the Orsay museum, overlooking Paris, Oct. 16, 2014. Short-term rental giant Airbnb is listing 11 iconic locations, including the Orsay, for a limited time in a splashy new marketing campaign. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File)
