Guyana to lead CARICOM countries in economic growth for 2023

Guyana is expected to record the highest growth among Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries this year, while Haiti will record under one percent growth in 2023, according to the latest World Economic Outlook released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday.

According to the IMF, Guyana, which is now recognized as an oil-producing country following the discovery of the product a few years ago, will record economic growth of 37.2 percent this year, increasing to 45.3 percent next year.

St Vincent & the Grenadines, which has the second-highest predicted economic growth of 6 percent this year, will register a 5 percent growth in 2024.

Antigua & Barbuda with a growth of 5.5 percent this year, will see that figure decline slightly to 5.4 percent next year, while Dominica and Barbados are projected to record economic growth of 4.9 percent this year, dropping to 4.7 and 3.9 percent respectively in 2024.

The twin-island Federation of St Kitts & Nevis will, according to the IMF projections, record economic growth of 4.5 percent this year, dropping to 3.8 percent the following year, while the Bahamas’ economic growth is projected at 4.3 percent declining significantly to 1.8 percent next year.

Belize, Grenada, St Lucia, and Trinidad & Tobago will all register growth of 3 or just over 3 percent this year, even as the growth will decline to 2 percent next year for Belize, increase to 4.1 percent for Grenada, a decline to 2.2 percent for St Lucia and 2.3 percent for Trinidad & Tobago.

Suriname will record economic growth of 2.3 percent this year, increasing to three percent the following year, while in the case of Haiti, where political and social unrest has engulfed that country, the economic growth this year will be 0.3 percent, increasing to 1.2 percent next year.

In its report, the Washington-based financial institution said that the global economy’s gradual recovery from both the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine remains on track.

It said China’s reopened economy is rebounding strongly and that supply chain disruptions are unwinding, while dislocations to energy and food markets caused by the war are receding.

“Simultaneously, the massive and synchronized tightening of monetary policy by most central banks should start to bear fruit, with inflation moving back towards targets,” he IMF said, adding that its latest World Economic Outlook is that growth will bottom out at 2.8 percent this year before rising modestly to 3 percent next year, 0.1 percentage points below the January projections.

“Global inflation will fall, though more slowly than initially anticipated, from 8.7 percent last year to seven percent this year and 4.9 percent in 2024,” the IMF said, noting that the economic slowdown is most pronounced in advanced economies and that inflation is falling more slowly than anticipated. -(CMC)