EBRD cuts economic growth forecast for Romania

Romania’s economy will grow by 4.2% this year and by 3.6% in 2019, according to the most recent forecast released by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The forecast for this year is 0.4 percentage points lower compared to the previous one in May, while the one for next year was cut by 0.6 pp. The EBRD expects average growth across its economies of 3.2% in 2018 and 2.6% in 2019, after 3.8% in 2017. Predictions for this year and next have been revised downwards from the May outlook by 0.1 and 0.6 percentage points respectively, primarily as a result of the Turkish slowdown. “Bulgaria is also performing well, as is Romania, despite some signs of overheating. Overall, the SEE region is projected to grow at 3.5% in 2018 and 3.2% in 2019,” reads an EBRD press release. At the beginning of October, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also revised downwards its forecast on Romania’s economic growth, to 4% in 2018 and 3.4% in 2019. editor@romania-insider.com