World Bank revises 2023 growth forecast for Georgia to 5.9%

The World Bank on Friday said it had revised the 2023 growth forecast for Georgia upward to 5.9 percent, Azernews reports, citing Agenda.

Georgia maintained robust growth momentum in the second quarter of 2023, with output increasing by 7.5 percent year-over-year. Growth forecasts for Georgia have been revised upward to 5.9 percent in 2023, as consumption and investment remain resilient”, the Bank said.

The institution added said exports grew “strongly” in the South Caucasus, as “booming” reexports of cars sustained the double-digit growth of exports in Georgia, even as exports of metals shrank, reflecting lower global prices.

The countries of the South Caucasus lead the Europe and Central Asia region in the speed of disinflation. A sharp reduction in the prices of food and energy imports, helped by a stronger currency, was the main driver of inflation dynamics in Georgia”, its report noted.

The Bank added the outlook was subject to “various downside risks”, that included a slowdown in money and remittance flows from Russia, a global growth slowdown, further restrictions on reexports, and longer than expected tightening of financial conditions.

The World Bank said in 2022, for the second year in a row, Armenia and Georgia were the “fastest growing economies” in Europe and Central Asia.