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IMF sees 0,5% growth in 2015

06/10/2015 17:04
The International Monetary Fund’s estimate for the recovery of the Cypriot economy in 2015 remains modest and cautious.

In its World Economic Outlook report, the IMF retained its estimate for a 0.5% growth of the economy in 2015 after shrinking by 2.3% in 2014 while for 2016 its estimate for GDP growth of 1.4% is also maintained.

As regards unemployment, it is expected to remain at the high levels of 16% in 2015 from 16.1% in 2014 while for 2016 it is expected to decline to 15%.

Inflation is expected to reach 1% this year from -0.3% in 2014 while in 2016 it is expected to reach 0.9%.

IMF expects the current account deficit to fall to 4.2% of GDP in 2015 from 4.5% in 2014, while for 2016 it is expected to fall further to 3.8%.

As far as it concerns Greece, the economy is expected to shrink by 2.3% this year following growth of 0.8%, while in 2016 the decline is estimated at 1.3%.

The eurozone is expected to grow by 1,5% this year and by 1,6% in 2016.

For the global economy, the IMF notes that six years after the world economy emerged from its broadest and deepest postwar recession, a return to robust and synchronized global expansion remains elusive.

The USA economy is forecast to grow by 2,6% in 2015 and 2,8% next year while the Russian economy is expected to shrink by 3,8% this year and by 0,6% in 2016.

The revised forecasts in World Economic Outlook report underscore the challenges all countries face. As noted, downside risks to the world economy appear more pronounced than they did just a few months ago.

Near-term economic growth still looks stronger in advanced economies, compared with the recent past, but weaker in the emerging market and developing economies that account for a growing share of world output and will still account for the lion’s share of world growth.