The International Monetary Fund has downgraded Croatia's economic outlook from 0.4 per cent to 0.2 per cent in its latest World Economic Outlook, published ahead of the regular spring convention of the Fund and the World Bank, set for 24-25 April in Washington.
The Fund expects the economic upturn of 2.5 percent in Croatia in 2011.
In the previous publication last autumn, the IMF projected that Croatia's economy would rise by 0.4 per cent in 2010.
The annual inflation rate in Croatia measured by the consumer price index will be 2.3 per cent in 2010, as against previously projected 2.8 per cent. The country's inflation is to rise to 2.8 per cent in 2011. Last year, the inflation rate totalled 2.4 per cent.
According to the latest World Economic Outlook, Croatia's current account deficit is projected to rise to 6.3 per cent of GDP this year from the previous forecast of 5.4 per cent of GDP.
The current account deficit is likely to rise to 6.8 per cent of GDP in 2011. According to the IMF, it amounted to 5.6 per cent of GDP in 2009.
The Fund forecasts a 2.9-per cent GDP growth in 2010 for the entire New Europe region, consisting of Turkey, Poland, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, apart from Croatia. This GDP growth is to accelerate to 3.4 per cent in 2011, in contrast to its downturn of 3.8 per cent in 2009.
The world economic growth is expected to rise to 4.2 per cent this year and to 4.3 per cent next year.
