For the upcoming fiscal year, the government has set a GDP growth target of 7%, which is higher than the 6.2% growth in the fiscal year's revised budget.
In his budget speech given at the Jatiya Sangsad on Thursday, Finance Minister AMA Muhith said: “Considering the future contribution of the industries and services sector, I have set the 2015-16 fiscal year's GDP growth target at 7%.”
He also said: “We want to break away from the last few years' average 6-6.2% growth in order to become a developed country by the year 2041.”
Personal consumption, and individual and government investments will be the driving forces behind the economic growth in the coming year, the minister said in his budget speech.
He also believes that a coordination between fiscal and monetary policies can help achieve the ambitious growth target.
A careful monetary policy can significantly ease inflationary pressures, said Muhith while presenting his seventh consecutive budget as an Awami League minister. He estimates that the rate of inflation in the coming fiscal will be 6.2%.
He also said that the deficit in the budget will be 5% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in FY16.
GDP is the monetary value of all finished goods and services produced within a country's borders over a specific time period, usually a year. It includes all private and public consumption, government outlays, investments and exports minus the imports.
It is commonly used as an indicator of the economic health of a country and a gauge for measuring standard of living.
