The Maldives’ economy will grow by five percent this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has forecast in its Global Economic Outlook publication. The nation’s economy grew by 8.1 percent last year.
According to the IMF, economies of comparable developing countries, such as Sri Lanka, look set to grow, on average, by 4.8 percent.
However, the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) — the nation’s central bank — forecasts the Maldives’ economic growth at 5.5 percent in 2024, while the current administration was even more bullish in its forecast of 6.7 percent growth.
The IMF report forecasts inflation will fall to 2.4 percent this year and that the nation’s current account balance will be at minus 13 percent — a three percent decrease over 2023. The current account balance reflects the difference between the Maldives’ imports and exports; with the negative percentage reflecting the highly import dependent economy.
India’s economy is expected to grow the most in the region, expanding by 6.3 percent, according to the IMF. Bangladesh’s economy is expected to grow by six percent while Nepal’s, similar to the Maldives, is expected to grow by five percent, the international financial agency predicted.
According to the report, which notes that global growth on average has slowed over the past three years due largely to the pandemic, the global economy will grow by 2.9 percent in 2024. Last year, the global economy grew by three percent. Developed economies are expected to see lesser growth; averaging at around 1.4 percent, the report notes.
Global inflation will be at 5.8 percent this year — 1.1 percent lower than last year.
The global economy is recovering slowly from the collapse caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the IMF said.