With world gross domestic product (GDP) expected to slow to 2.2 percent in 2009 according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) — down sharply from 5.0 percent in 2007 and 3.7 percent in 2008 — the Eurozone will not escape the global slowdown unscathed. Recently released data reveals the 15-nation Eurozone economy already is in recession, and there is a widespread perception the European Central Bank (ECB) was behind the curve in implementing the necessary rate cuts to stimulate its economies. The IMF now forecasts a -0.5-percent gross GDP reading for the Eurozone in 2009, down from their projected 1.2 forecast for 2008.