The chief of the International Monetary Fund(IMF) has hinted that the global growth outlook for this year could be lowered further.

The IMF projected in April that the global economy would contract three percent in 2020, the steepest negative growth since the Great Depression in the 1930s.

According to Reuters, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva attended an online event Friday hosted by the European University Institute and said that based on recent economic indicators, global growth this year could be lower.

She pointed out that if trade retreats and protectionism increases at this critical time, the prospect of a global recovery may worsen.

The IMF chief said that reviving international trade is the key to ensuring global economic recovery, adding that otherwise the world will be less stable due to higher costs and smaller income.

She also noted that the IMF has provided emergency funding to 50 of the 103 nations that have applied for assistance amid the coronavirus pandemic.