South Africa’s growing trade links to the rest of the continent are likely to be affected as the global financial crisis starts filtering down to low-income countries. Sub-Saharan Africa is singled out as being particularly vulnerable in a new International Monetary Fund (IMF) study: "The Impact of the Financial Crisis on Low-Income Countries.” "After hitting first the advanced economies and then the emerging economies, a third wave from the global financial crisis is now hitting the world's poorest and most vulnerable countries," said IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn at the launch of the study. The IMF forecasts that lowincome country growth in 2009 is projected at just over 4% – more than 2% lower than expected a year ago – with risks heavily on the downside. This means that many of the world's poorest countries will at best see incomes stagnate this year, and possibly even contract. According to the study, a one per cent slowdown in the rest of the world has led to an estimated half a percent slowdown in sub- Saharan countries. Strauss-Kahn warned that lower growth could have serious implications for poverty and potentially also for political stability. Low-income African countries hardest hit by the world crisis include Angola, Chad, Republic of Congo, Nigeria, Burundi, Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Lesotho and Zambia.
