June 8 (SeeNews) - The World Bank has left unchanged its gross domestic product (GDP) forecast for southeast Europe (SEE) in its June Global Economic Prospects (GEP) report as compared to a previous report in April.
"Countries that are oriented towards, or are members of, the European Union (Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Poland, and increasingly Ukraine) will benefit from some recovery in export demand, supported by real exchange rate depreciation, " the bank said in the GEP report, published late on Tuesday.
The management of external financing will remain a priority as current account deficits remain sizable in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia, the bank noted.
Oil importers are realizing fiscal savings, especially those that are taking advantage of low energy prices to implement subsidy reforms such as Romania.
Moldova has been adversely affected by spillovers in the form of reduced trade and remittances. Key priorities include adjusting to lower government revenues and mitigating financial sector risks in a context of reduced fiscal space for potential financial sector stabilisation measures.
GDP growth outlook by country in SEE region (pct change):
Country |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
Albania |
3.2 |
3.5 |
3.8 |
Bosnia&Herzegovina |
2.6 |
3.1 |
3.5 |
Bulgaria |
2.2 |
2.7 |
3.0 |
Croatia |
1.9 |
2.0 |
2.4 |
Kosovo |
3.6 |
4.0 |
4.1 |
Macedonia |
3.7 |
4.0 |
4.0 |
Moldova |
0.5 |
4.0 |
4.5 |
Montenegro |
3.7 |
3.1 |
3.0 |
Romania |
4.0 |
3.7 |
3.4 |
Serbia |
1.8 |
2.3 |
3.5 |
source: World Bank