The United Nations has slashed its global growth predictions to 2.4 per cent for 2013 and 3.2 per cent for the following year and warned of a lasting employment crisis for western countries. The UN's World Economic Situation and Prospects 2013 report warned that the debt crises in Europe and the United States and a slowdown in China could plunge the world economy into recession. The growth predictions are a major cut from the UN forecast of six months ago when it predicted 2.7 per cent for 2013 and 3.9 per cent for the year after. The report said, with existing policies and growth trends, it may take at least another five years for Europe and the United States to make up for the job losses caused by the Great Recession of 2008-2009. It said, Europe is trapped in a vicious cycle of debt, austerity,low growth and high unemployment. The UN report said, growth remains meagre in the United States, while Japan is caught in deflationary conditions and its 2013 growth is predicted at 0.6 per cent. It said, growth in southeast Asia helped sustain world trade through the recent crisis but fell to 5.5 per cent in 2012 and will only recover slightly to 6 per cent in 2013 and 6.3 per cent in 2014. The report predicted growth in South Asia averaging 5 per cent in 2013, up from 4.4 per cent in 2012, led by a moderate recovery in India.