The war in Ukraine is a catastrophe for the world which will cut global economic growth, says the president of the World Bank.

"The war in Ukraine comes at a bad time for the world because inflation was already rising," said David Malpass.

He stressed his biggest concern is "about the pure human loss of lives" that is occurring.

Thousands of civilians and soldiers are thought to have been killed by the fighting.

He further said the economic impact of the war stretches beyond Ukraine's borders, and the rises in global energy prices in particular "hit the poor the most, as does inflation".

Food prices have also been pushed up by the war, and "are a very real consideration and problem for people in poor countries".

The president of the World Bank points out that both Russia and Ukraine are big food producers. Ukraine is the world's biggest producer of sunflower oil, with Russia number two, according to S&P Global Platts. Between them they account for 60% of global production.

The two countries also account for 28.9% of global wheat exports according to JP Morgan. Wheat prices on the Chicago future exchange have been trading at 14-year highs.

Russian supplies of these commodities are being restricted because of the widespread sanctions which make it hard for the rest of the world to buy its products. Ukrainian supplies have been stopped because fighting has closed the country's ports.

"There's no way to adjust quickly enough to the loss of supply from Ukraine and from Russia, and so that adds to prices," says the president of the World Bank.