The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has revised its forecast for the growth rate of the Croatian economy in 2007 upwards to 5.6 percent from the April forecast of 4.7 percent, according to the latest report on the outlook for global economic growth.
The growth estimate for 2008 has also been revised upwards from 4.5 to 4.7 percent, the IMF states in the latest edition of the “World Economic Outlook.” The inflation rate in Croatia is expected to be 2.3 percent in 2007 compared to the previously forecasted 2.7 percent, while it is expected to be 2.8 percent in 2008, confirming the forecast from the April report.
The forecast for the current account deficit in 2007 has been slightly revised upwards from 8.3 to 8.4 percent, while a significantly higher rate of 8.8 percent is projected for 2008 compared to the previously forecasted 7.8 percent. In the region of Southern and Southeastern Europe, which the IMF has included Croatia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Malta, the earlier forecast for the growth rate in 2007 of 6.0 percent has been confirmed, while the growth estimate for 2008 has been significantly revised upwards to 5.7 percent from the previously forecasted 4.9 percent.
Furthermore, the IMF has confirmed the July revision of the global economic growth forecast for 2007 at a rate of 5.2 percent. However, it has lowered the estimate for 2008 by 0.4 percentage points to 4.8 percent. The growth forecast for the Eurozone economy for 2008 has also been lowered to 2.1 percent from the previously forecasted 2.5 percent.
For the USA, the IMF now predicts a growth rate of 1.9 percent in 2008, which is significantly lower than the 2.8 percent it predicted in forecasts published on July 25. Regarding Japan, the growth rate is expected to be 2.0 percent in 2007 and 1.7 percent in 2008, according to the IMF. (H)
