WASHINGTON, October 8. /TASS/. The impact of US customs tariffs — and retaliatory measures — on the global economy has proven less severe than initially feared, and the world has so far managed to avoid a full-scale trade war, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva said ahead of the IMF and World Bank annual meetings scheduled for next week.

The world has so far managed to avoid sliding into a tit-for-tat trade war, she said adding that the shock from the introduction of tariffs has not been as significant as expected.

According to her, the average import tariff rate in the United States has fallen from 23% in April of this year to 17.5% at present, although it remains the highest globally. Meanwhile, most other countries, with a few exceptions, have largely maintained stable tariff levels even after implementing certain countermeasures.

Georgieva cautioned, however, that "the full effect is still to unfold. In the US, margin compression could give way to more price pass-through, raising inflation with implications for monetary policy and growth."

On April 2, US President Donald Trump announced the introduction of customs tariffs on products from 185 countries and territories. The US leader subsequently adjusted tariff rates for several of those nations.