Donald Trump becoming president a threat to the world, says Economist Intelligence Unit

Donald Trump is now officially a major economic threat to the world, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit.

On Thursday the research firm upgraded a threat titled “Donald Trump wins the US presidential election” to level 12.

As of Thursday morning, it’s sixth on the list of global threats – tied with “The rising threat of jihadi terrorism.”

The top threat facing the world according to the Intelligence Unit is an economic downturn in China, which rates a threat level 20.

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If elected, analysts believe “the innate hostility within the Republican hierarchy towards Mr Trump, combined with the inevitable virulent Democratic opposition, will … undermine the coherence of domestic and foreign policymaking.”

The Intelligence Unit based the rating on statements Trump has made about China, the Middle East and free trade.

“First, he has been exceptionally hostile towards free trade, including notably NAFTA, and has repeatedly labelled China as a ‘currency manipulator,’” a statement on the Economist’s website reads.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "First, he has been exceptionally hostile towards free trade, including notably NAFTA, and has repeatedly labelled China as a 'currency manipulator,'" a statement on the Economist's website reads.

Analysts have determined that the repeated hostility could “escalate rapidly into a trade war.”

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His extreme views on the Middle East also added to the threat.

“His militaristic tendencies towards the Middle East (and ban on all Muslim travel to the US) would be a potent recruitment tool for jihadi groups, increasing their threat both within the region and beyond,” the website reads.

Trump is currently the favourite to win the republican nomination for the 2016 U.S. presidential election, after winning five out of six states in Tuesday’s primaries.

Also on the list of top ten threats to the world are “Brexit” and “Grexit,” two threats which could see Britain and Greece respectively leave the European Union.

The Economist Intelligence Unit is the sister company to The Economist newspaper in Britain, focused on research and analysis of how the world is changing.