IMF-World Bank meetings open in Bangkok under shadow of Middle East war and highest debt since WWII

The 2026 IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings, held outside Washington for the first time in three years, are drawing roughly 18,000 attendees to Bangkok (October 12-18) under the strain of the US-Israel-Iran war and warnings that global public debt is at its highest level since the Second World War. IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva has flagged coming growth downgrades for Ukraine and Gulf states, while developing countries face roughly $400 billion in external debt payments this year.

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