Fitch Sees 20% Decline In Oil Prices Boosting Global Growth

A 20% decline in oil prices will boost global economic growth by 0.3% in the next two years, Fitch Ratings said on Friday. Its forecast came after the International Energy Agency cut its 2015 forecast for global oil demand, citing lower expectations from oil-exporting nations. Fitch is forecasting global growth of 2.4% in 2014, followed by 2.9% in 2015 and 3% in 2016. The outlook has weakened since its last update in September, mainly due to weakness in the euro zone, Japan and other emerging markets, but "a robust recovery in the U.S. is driving current growth, supported by private consumption, higher household disposable income and a strengthening labor market," said Gergely Kiss, director of sovereigns. Fitch is expecting the U.S. high-yield default rate to remain benign, but highlighted that the energy sector is the one to keep an eye on.