Bangladesh's economy is showing signs of recovery, with the latest forecast from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projecting a significant upturn.
The World Economic Outlook IMF released on Tuesday night (Washington time) projected a GDP growth of 3.8 percent for Bangladesh in the current fiscal 2024-25.
The outlook further anticipates an increase in growth to 6.5 percent in the upcoming fiscal year 2025-26. The report was unveiled on the second day of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meetings, now taking place in Washington, USA.
Alongside global trends, the IMF updated country-specific data in this outlook. It projects inflation in Bangladesh to remain at 10 percent. The country has been grappling with persistent inflationary pressure over the past two years.
According to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), inflation stood at 9.35 percent in March, with an annual average of 10.26 percent over the past year.
The Awami League government initially targeted a GDP growth of 6.75 percent when it presented the budget for FY 2024-25 in June.
But, the interim administration recently revised the target downward to 5.25 percent, citing ongoing financial challenges, business stagnation, and political instability following the change in government.
Earlier this month, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) projected a GDP growth of 3.9 percent for Bangladesh this fiscal year-slightly higher than the IMF's updated estimate.
Globally, the IMF expects average GDP growth to be 2.8 percent, while the average for Asia forecast to be 4.5 percent. �"UNB
