WASHINGTON, April 5: The United States will overcome a housing slowdown and avert recession, while the rest of the global economy is in sound health, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday.

“The message here is reassuring: we do not think the US is heading for recession,” the IMF’s new chief economist Simon Johnson told a news conference.

Johnson acknowledged the housing slowdown underway in the world’s largest economy, “but we’re not seeing it spread beyond residential construction.”

Neighbouring Canada and Mexico could feel some effects from the US housing market, “but it won’t spill over to the broader global economy,” the economist said.

“If the United States sneezes, you should worry about other parts of the world catching cold. But at the moment, other parts of the world are healthy,” he added.

“The US economy has also been taking its vitamins. While there are problems in one important sector and a couple of regions of the United States, overall the economy is very healthy.”

Johnson was speaking at the release of a portion of the IMF’s semi-annual World Economic Outlook.—AFP