Int'l leaders, political figures extend Spring Festival greetings to Chinese people

As the Spring Festival approaches, leaders of international organizations and global political figures have extended warm wishes to the Chinese people, expressing hopes for happiness and prosperity in the Year of the Horse.

Falling on Tuesday this year, the Spring Festival marks the start of the Chinese New Year and ushers in the Year of the Horse, the seventh animal in the Chinese zodiac.

Drawing on the symbolism of the horse, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon shared optimism about making strides together in the year ahead.

"On the occasion of the Chinese Spring Festival of the Year of the Horse, I would like to extend my sincere congratulations and best wishes to President Xi Jinping. The Year of the Horse embodies fervent strength and an enterprising spirit. I wish the great and friendly Chinese people peace, tranquility and continued progress in the year ahead," he said.

Meanwhile, a Chinese New Year celebration themed "Galloping Forward with the United Nations" was held at the UN Headquarters on Feb 9, gathering representatives to the UN from more than 120 countries, and over 500 guests from various sectors in the eastern United States.

"I wish all the most wonderful things for the people of China in the Year of the Horse. And I hope that we all work together towards making this world a better place for everyone," said Melissa Fleming, UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications.

Additionally, the Chinese Embassy in Canada held its Spring Festival reception in Ottawa on Feb 10. More than 200 people attended the event, including Canadian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs David Morrison, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister Kody Blois, Senator Clement Gignac, Member of Parliament Zoe Royer, and representatives of Chinese communities, organizations and students in Canada.

"I want to wish everyone back in China a happy New Year, all the best. And we look forward to our continued bilateral relationship and the warming of relations between our two countries," said Blois.

Meanwhile, a concert marking the Spring Festival was held Thursday in Vientiane, capital of Laos, drawing more than 1,000 people from various sectors.

Thongloun Sisoulith, general secretary of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) Central Committee and Lao president, attended the event together with representatives from political, economic and cultural circles.

During the concert, a selection of classic Chinese and Lao musical pieces was performed in turn, showcasing the artistic charm of both countries. The performances were met with warm applause from the audience.

Int'l leaders, political figures extend Spring Festival greetings to Chinese people

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its global economic growth forecasts for 2026 to 3.1 percent in the World Economic Outlook (WEO) report published on Tuesday, while keeping its projection for 2027 at 3.2 percent.

This marks a deceleration from the estimated 3.4 percent growth achieved in 2025. Before the outbreak of the Middle East conflict, the bottom-up forecasts for global growth would have been 3.4 percent in 2026 and 3.2 percent in 2027.

The forecast incorporates the impact of the war and assumes that it will be limited in duration, intensity and scope, with disruptions fading by mid-2026.

Under the reference forecast, global headline inflation is expected to increase to 4.4 percent in 2026 and decline to 3.7 percent in 2027.

If the conflict and the ensuing spike in oil prices last longer, global economic growth in 2026 will fall to 2.5 percent, while global inflation will climb to 5.4 percent, according to the report.

In extreme cases, global economic growth in 2026 could drop to two percent, the report warned.

To be specific, the U.S. economy is projected to grow by 2.3 percent in 2026 and 2.1 percent in 2027, although higher trade barriers introduced since April 2025 are expected to continue to weigh on activity.

In the euro area, growth is projected to decline from 1.4 percent in 2025 to 1.1 percent in 2026 before edging up to 1.2 percent in 2027. The forecasts for 2026 and 2027 are each 0.2 percentage point lower than those compared in the January 2026 WEO Update.

The 2026 growth forecast for emerging market and developing economies is revised down by 0.3 percentage point, to 3.9 percent, while the outlook for advanced economies remains broadly unchanged. With risks still tilted to the downside since the January 2026 WEO Update, the IMF suggested a comprehensive policy package combining domestic measures with coordinated international actions to strengthen resilience and foster adaptability.

It also stated in the report that "trade restrictions play a limited role in correcting imbalances but can worsen output," and urged countries to cooperate and take coordinated actions to restore stability to international economic relations.

IMF lowers global growth forecast for 2026 to 3.1 pct