| IMF predicts higher growth rate for Georgia in 2011 |
| Date: 2011/2/28 Click: 1992 |
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The International Monetary Fund ( IMF) on Wednesday announced upgraded 2011 gross domestic product growth for Georgia and predicted a lower-than-2010 annual inflation for the South Caucasus country.
David Gardner, resident representative of the UN body, told a press briefing that the IMF had upgraded Georgia's economic growth outlook from 4.5 percent to 5.5 percent in 2011 while the country' s foreign direct investment will increase to 700 million U.S. dollars in 2011, up from 600 million dollars in 2010.
The IMF official told the local press that the UN body expects annual inflation in Georgia to drop to 8 percent by the end of this year.
Annual inflation of the country was 11.8 percent in December last year.
The IMF official said that he would expect prices to get stabilized and inflation to decrease to single-digit by December if there are no external shocks in the second half of this year. But he admitted that neither the World Bank nor the government of Georgia could do anything to prevent the import of inflation.
Government officials and local economists in Georgia have been blaming increasing food and fuel prices on the international markets.
Georgia has to rely on imports to get its food and fuel supplies.
In January this year, inflation in Georgia was forced up even further to 12.3 percent because of increased food and fuel prices on global markets. |
