Outlook for global economy improves: OECD

PARIS - Economic activity is picking up or steadying in the United States, the eurozone and in China, the OECD said on Monday on the basis of leading indicators of activity in the main industrialised economies.

"Composite leading indicators point to stabilising economic growth in most major economies," the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development said.

The OECD's monthly indicator summarising signals from economies showed that growth is "firming" in the United States, that a downturn in the eurozone is "stabilising" and that there are "tentative signs of a turning point (upwards) in China."

In the OECD area, which comprises 34 countries, growth is "firming," the OECD concluded.

For several months, international economic forecasting organisations have warned that the eurozone debt crisis was one of the main threats to the outlook for the global economy which struggled towards the end of last year.

But in recent weeks sentiment on financial markets has edged towards the view that the eurozone is getting on top of its crisis.

In the United States and the United Kingdom, which is not a member of the eurozone, the overall indicator "continues to point to economic growth firming," the OECD said. "In China and India, signs of a turning point are more marked than in last month's assessment."

The indicators for Italy, Germany, France and the eurozone as a whole "point to a stabilisation in growth prospects," it said. "Likewise, in Brazil and Japan, tentative signs of stabilising growth are emerging."

But the figures for Canada and Russia "continue to signal weak growth prospects," the OECD said.