IMF Raises Armenia's Economic Growth Forecast to 6% in 2024
On June 5, Thanos Arvanitis, IMF Director for the Middle East and Central Asia Region, discussed the revised economic growth forecast for Armenia.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has adjusted its projections and now expects Armenia's economy to grow by 6% in 2024, as stated in its April World Economic Outlook report. This is an increase from the previous projection of 5% economic growth in 2024 made last October. The report also forecasts a slowdown to 5.2% growth in 2025.
Arvanitis cited several factors that contributed to the revision. "First, 2023 ended with a very impressive growth of 8.7 percent. The results for the first quarter of this year are not bad either. Growth for the beginning of 2024 continues to be strong, driven by domestic consumption as well as the volume of services, including IT and tourism. "We have also seen strong jewelry and gold sales volumes recently. Based on these factors, we have revised our growth forecast to 6 percent," he added.
The IMF predicts that Armenia's GDP growth will be more moderate in 2025. Arvanitis explained, "It is assumed that financial injections will decrease and the base that determined growth in 2024 will gradually level off."
He emphasized the need for structural reforms for further growth of the Armenian economy. "Reform policymakers should continue to intensify their efforts to increase productivity so that the country can achieve a higher level of sustainable growth," he added.