October 12 (SeeNews) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects Kosovo's economy to grow by 2.7% this year, the global lender said, slightly cutting by 0.1 percentage points its April projection.
Kosovo's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 3.5% next year, the IMF said in the October edition of its World Economic Outlook report published on Tuesday.
Last year, Kosovo's economic output expanded by an estimated 9.5%, according to the report.
Kosovo's average consumer price inflation is seen surging to 12% in 2022 from 3.3% last year, before slowing to 5% in 2023, the IMF said.
The country's current account deficit, standing at 8.8% as a percentage of GDP in 2021, is forecast to expand to 10.9% in 2022 before shrinking to 8.7% in 2023.
The IMF projects that the economy of the Emerging and Developing Europe area will stagnate in 2022, before slightly expanding by 0.6% in 2023. The region includes Bosnia, Romania, Turkey, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Albania, Kosovo, Moldova, Montenegro and North Macedonia.
The global economy is expected to expand by 3.2% in 2022 and by 2.7% in 2023 as it continues to face challenges due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, persistent and broadening inflation pressures and the slowdown in China, the IMF said.