Growth will be accelerated in the first quarter of 2006 in major developed countries, especially in euro area and the United States, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) forecast on Monday.

For the G-7 countries -- the United States, Germany, France, Japan, United Kingdom and Italy -- a growth of 0.8 percent is predicted in the first quarter and 0.7 percent in the second, OECD's chief economist Jean-Philippe Cotis said in a statement.

For the euro area, the OECD foresees a 0.6 percent growth for both quarters, after a climb of 0.3 percent in the final quarter of 2005.

In France, economic growth could be 0.5 percent in the first two quarters, after a rise of 0.2 percent in the last quarter of 2005, the OECD said.

However Cotis warned the European Central Bank against raising interest rates too quickly.

"Some of the factors that have thus far sustained buoyant overall growth may no longer do so ... One source of risk in this regard stems from stretched valuations in some housing markets," Cotis said.

The United States could register a surge of 1.1 percent in the first quarter and 0.9 percent in the second, after 0.4 percent growth in the fourth quarter of 2005, the OECD said.

It also sees a new monetary contraction being possible in the United States where the Federal Reserve's directive interest rate is 4.5 percent.

As for Japan, the OECD foresees an economic growth of 1.1 percent in the first quarter and 0.9 percent in the second.

Cotis, among others, called on the Bank of Japan to be patient over monetary policy after eight years of deflation.

Source: Xinhua