The World Bank on Tuesday revised growth forecasts downward for the world and Japan for this year as a tit-for-tat tariff war between the United States and China has led to slowing trade and investment.

In its semiannual Global Economic Prospects report, the Washington-based institution estimated global growth at 2.6 percent, down 0.3 percentage point from its estimate in January, and Japan's growth at 0.8 percent, down 0.1 point.

Growth in East Asia and the Pacific is projected to slow to 5.9 percent in 2019 from 6.3 percent the previous year, making it the first time since the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis that growth in the region has dropped below 6 percent.