BUCHAREST, April 22 (Xinhua) -- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has sharply revised down its forecast for Romania's economic growth in 2025, cutting it from 3.3 percent to 1.6 percent, according to the latest World Economic Outlook report released on Tuesday.
The downgrade follows a modest 0.9 percent growth of the Romanian economy in 2024. However, the IMF projects a recovery in 2026, with growth expected to rise to 2.8 percent.
Released during the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the IMF in Washington, the report also anticipates a gradual narrowing of Romania's current account deficit -- from 8.3 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024 to 7.6 percent in 2025 and 7.4 percent in 2026. These figures are less optimistic than the IMF's October 2024 forecast, which predicted the deficit would fall to 7 percent by 2025.
Inflation is forecast to decline over the coming years, averaging 4.6 percent in 2025 and 3.1 percent in 2026, down from 5.6 percent in 2024. The new projection for 2025 is notably higher than the 3.6 percent forecast made in October.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate is expected to remain steady at 5.4 percent in 2025 before easing slightly to 5.2 percent in 2026. ■
