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Daily Update — April 18, 2025

April Economic Outlook; Oil and Gas Decorbonization; and AI and Privacy

Today is Thursday, April 18, 2025, and here’s your curated selection of Essential Intelligence on global markets from S&P Global. Subscribe to be notified of each new Daily Update.

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Economy

Global economic outlook: April 2025

 

Trade tensions and uncertainties are causing volatility in financial markets, especially following the US’ announcement of tariffs on April 2, which led to significant equity price corrections. While markets initially rebounded following the April 9 pause on tariffs, conditions remain unstable, with heightened risk aversion and concerns over declining foreign demand for US Treasurys causing yields to rise. 

 

As a result, global growth forecasts for 2025 and 2026 have been revised downward, with the annual global real GDP growth forecast for 2025 lowered to 2.2% from 2.5%. Trade tensions are likely to dampen growth in Canada and China, while inflation forecasts for global and North American consumers were raised due to shifts in US trade policy. 

 

Learn more with S&P Global Market Intelligence’s economic indicators and forecasts. 

Energy Transition & Sustainability

Sustainability Insights: Research: Decarbonizing Oil And Gas Production Faces Long-Term Hurdles After Short-Term Gains

 

The oil and gas sector is a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions and is expected to remain vital in the energy landscape. Demand for crude oil and natural gas continues to rise, driven by energy security and affordability concerns; S&P Global Commodity Insights forecasts crude oil demand to peak around 2030 and natural gas to peak a decade later. This increasing demand is linked to higher emissions, underscoring the urgent need for decarbonization to help governments and industries meet their emissions reduction goals.

 

Despite some progress, the oil and gas industry's emissions reduction efforts are insufficient in meeting climate targets. While there have been reductions in emissions intensity, performance varies widely among producers due to differing production levels and efficiency measures.

Artificial Intelligence

Listen: AI and Privacy

 

Privacy concerns around AI are some of the most significant. In this episode of the “Next in Tech” podcast, S&P Global Market Intelligence 451 Research analyst Paige Bartley discusses the results of two recent studies on enterprise and consumer perspectives on AI and privacy with host Eric Hanselman. 

 

Enterprise privacy concerns are becoming more operational and reputational as the importance of data privacy grows. The EU’s landmark General Data Protection Regulation was announced in 2016, and most early efforts focused on compliance. Businesses have now shifted to building privacy functionality into the foundations of their operations.

In case you missed it

  • BP's exploration licensing deal in India makes it the only international company to have secured upstream contracts in the country. The deal could stimulate the interest of more global majors to participate in future bidding rounds.
  • Australian beef exporters remain confident in the demand for Australian beef in 2025, with strong export demand anticipated from the US and Asia, even in the face of challenges such as volatile foreign exchange rates.
  • Saudi Arabia’s retail real estate sector is transforming due to  economic diversification efforts under the country’s Vision 2030 initiative and an evolving consumer landscape.

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