US-China trade war to cost $455bn in lost output, says IMF

Christine Lagarde says world must avoid the 'self-inflicted wounds' of a tit-for-tat wrangle

The International Monetary Fund has called for a speedy end to the deepening trade war between the United States and China after calculating that the tit-for-tat tariffs will cost $455bn (357.5bn) in lost output next year - more than the size of South Africa's economy.

Christine Lagarde, the IMF's managing director, underlined her organisation's growing concern at the most serious outbreak of trade tension since the 1930s and said "self-inflicted wounds" had to be avoided.