In a newly-released report, the World Bank said four years after the onset of the global financial crisis, the world economy remains fragile and growth in high-income countries is weak. Developing countries need to focus on raising the growth potential of their economies, while strengthening buffers to deal with risks from the Euro Area and fiscal policy in the United States.

The Bank estimates global GDP grew 2.3% in 2012, compared with last June’s expectation of 2.5%. Growth is expected to remain broadly unchanged at 2.4% growth in 2013, before gradually strengthening to 3.1% in 2014 and 3.3% in 2015.

Overall, the report notes that global trade of goods and services, which grew only 3.5% in 2012, is expected to accelerate, expanding by 6.0% in 2013 and 7.0% by 2015.

To read the World Bank news release click here.