You are now listening to Macrodose.

Macrodoze.

Macrodoze.

Hello and welcome to Macrodose, a podcast hosted by me, James Meadway, that brings you your weekly fix of everything economics and a quick, 15-minute round-up.

Each Wednesday morning, we bring you the key stories, making the news and the analysis you need to make sense of them.

On today's episode, the first for the new year, we'll be having a look at some predictions for the next 12 months.

First, some seasonal cheer from the International Monetary Fund.

Second, and interesting taking events from an unexpected source, BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager.

And finally, the world's billionaires

lost $2 trillion last year. So what's going on? First up, we turn to everyone's second

favorite Bretton Woods institution, the International Monetary Fund, which has been warning of

recession across the globe next year, singling out the EU, the US, and China in particular,

although take it as read that

Britain will be tagging along with that unhappy trio.

IMF managing director, Kristina Georgiva, told CBS News that this year will be tougher than the

one we just had.

Happily stopping just short of the full Enver Hodger, this year will be harder than last year.

On the other hand, it will be easier than next year, the eccentric Albanian dictator told his country for New Year 1967. But Georgieva's

message isn't much better. Although two-thirds of the world won't, if the IMF reckons, technically

be in recession, she says it would feel like recession for hundreds of millions of people.

Combined with rising prices across the globe and the rising costs of debt as interest rates also

increase, the misery is likely to be deep and widespread.

...