UniCredit keeps Bosnia's 2024 GDP growth f'cast at 2.5%

Growth in 2024 will likely pick up, driven by a recovery in private consumption, as real income recovers, reflecting disinflation, UniCredit said in a quarterly macroeconomic report on Central and Eastern Europe earlier this week.

"A positive factor behind this outlook is that governments were formed in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) and its main entities more swiftly than usual after the latest general elections in October 2022. So, we also expect to see more of a contribution from public spending, which should be easier to implement with all the layers of government formed in 2023," UniCredit said.

In 2025, Bosnia's gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to increase by 3%, as private consumption recovers further, investment increases and net external demand improves, UniCredit said.

In terms of inflation in Bosnia, the banking group expects it to range between 3 and 4% in 2024 and then around 3% in 2025. Average annual inflation in Bosnia is estimated at 6.3% in 2023.