The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday forecasted Bangladesh's economic growth to 5.5% in the current FY23, putting it in a favourable image compared to that put by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB)'s projections.
Early this month, the World Bank projected the country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the current fiscal at 5.2% and ADB at 5.3%.
On the eve of the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings, the IMF drew the economic growth picture of Bangladesh and the global economy in its World Economic Outlook (WEO) report at its headquarters in Washington.
It drew a rosy picture for Bangladesh's economy in the next FY24 as it is expected to grow at a 6.5% rate then.
According to the IMF, Bangladesh will grow at a better rate (5.5%) than the developing and emerging Asian countries whose average economic growth is projected to be 5.3%.
Among the emerging Asian nations, India is projected to grow at 5.9%, China at 5.2%, Cambodia at 5.8% and Vietnam at 5.8%.
The Washington-based multilateral lender forecasted inflation at a higher rate of 8.6% in the current fiscal.
However, the government targeted to keep the inflation at 5.6% in the current FY23.
About the global scenario, the IMF said headline inflation in the baseline is set to fall from 8.7% in 2022 to 7% in 2023 on the back of lower commodity prices but underlying (core) inflation is likely to decline more slowly.
Inflation's return to target is unlikely before 2025 in most cases, the IMF WEO said. About Bangladesh's current account balance, the IMF said it could be maintained at a negative trajectory of 2.1% of GDP by the end of the current FY23.
Regarding the global economy, the IMF in the outlook said it is uncertain again amid financial sector turmoil, high inflation, ongoing effects of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and three years of the Covid pandemic.
The baseline forecast is for growth to fall from 3.4% in 2022 to 2.8% in 2023, before settling at 3% in 2024.
Advanced economies are expected to see an especially pronounced growth slowdown, from 2.7% in 2022 to 1.3% in 2023, the IMF added.
