By Mewati Sitaram
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said that India and China would contribute to half of the world’s growth this year while the global economy is expected to expand at mere 3 percent. International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva said, “The period of slower economic activity will be prolonged, with the next five years witnessing less than 3% growth, our lowest medium-term growth forecast since 1990, and well below the average of 3.8% from the past two decades.” According to IMF projections, India is expected to grow at 6.8 per cent in 2023, followed by China with 5.2 per cent.
This is in line with an earlier report titled “Asian Economic Outlook and Integration Progress” by China’s top think tank the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA). In its report it said that Asia’s weighted real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate in 2023 was estimated to be 4.5 per cent, an increase from 4.2 per cent in 2022, making it a “standout performer in view of the global economic slowdown.”
The BFA report said, “In 2023, in the context of a global slowdown and the risk of increasing fragmentation of globalisation, Asia is expected to accelerate its pace of overall economic growth, continue to advance regional production, trade, investment and financial integration and cohesion, and seize the ‘Asian moment’ for global economic governance.”
These numbers were further confirmed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). In its report issued on April 4, ADB said that the Chinese economy would expand by 4.8% in this year, up from 4.2% in 2022. It said inflation would likely cool slightly this year and fall further in 2024. India’s economy is expected to grow at a slower pace of 6.4% this year. That follows a 9.1% annual pace of expansion in 2021 as it rebounded from the worst of the pandemic, and 6.8% last year.
Editor in Chief : Mewati SItaram
