Positive outlook as nations head to Davos

The world's financial and political elite will head this week to the Alps for 2013's gathering of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, with the global economy far less plagued by fear than it was last year.

Much-feared worldwide panics from a collapse of the euro currency union have been avoided. China appears likely to remain an engine of global growth. Stocks are off to a running start in the New Year.

"There's a sense of relief that the worst didn't happen . . . and I think that relief is probably justified," said Nariman Behravesh, chief economist at IHS Global Insight.

Davos is the venue for the World Economic Forum, a gathering of more than 2,000 decision-makers from nearly 100 countries and hundreds of companies that starts Wednesday. Prior events have attracted attendees such as Microsoft founder Bill Gates and News Corp. chief executive Rupert Murdoch.

The WEF has taken "Resilient Dynamism" as the theme for this year's event.

Yet the global economy is expected to remain sluggish in 2013, with two of the biggest economies -- the euro alliance and Japan -- in recession. Analysts caution that the still-sluggish global economy has little room for error.

IHS Global Insight predicts the worldwide economy will expand just 2.5 percent in 2013, even less than last year's estimated 2.6 percent. -- AP