ECONOMIC OUTLOOK – EU Commission Slashes GDP Growth Fcasts for SEE Members

The Commission expects economic growth in the bloc to fall by about 1.8% this year, with growth projected to remain positive in nine member states, before turning moderately positive in 2010, to around 0.5%, the Commission said in a report.

The EU executive estimates that the bloc’s economic growth has dropped to about 1.0% in 2008 from 2.9% a year earlier.

“The deteriorated outlook is the result of the impact on the real economy of the intensified financial crisis and the ensuing global downturn,” it said.

The Commission lowered Slovenia’s 2009 economic growth forecast to 0.6% from 2.9% projected in November. The 2009 gross domestic product (GDP) growth forecasts for Bulgaria and Romania were decreased to 1.8% for each of the two countries, from 4.5% and 4.7%, respectively.

The three countries are so far the only SEE members of the EU. Slovenia joined the EU in 2004 and the two Black Sea countries followed in 2007.

Details from the European Commission report about the economic development of Slovenia, Bulgaria and Romania and Commission follow (November forecasts in brackets):

SLOVENIA:

BULGARIA:

ROMANIA: