Baku, Azerbaijan, July 23
By Azad Hasanli – Trend:
Fitch international ratings agency downgraded the forecast on inflation in Azerbaijan from 14 to 11.5 percent and from 7 to 6 percent in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
A Fitch report said the inflation in the country is expected at the level of 3 percent in 2018.
The agency’s forecast for growth of Azerbaijan’s GDP has remained unchanged at 1.5 percent for 2017, while the forecast for 2016 has been upgraded from -3.3 to -3 percent.
Meanwhile, Fitch expects that Azerbaijan’s economy will grow by 3 percent in 2018.
The agency has also raised the forecast on GDP per capita, which was forecasted at $3,707 for 2016 and $4,297 for 2017.
But the latest Fitch forecast shows that GDP per capita is expected at $3,813 and $4,434 in 2016 and 2017, respectively, and at $4,948 in 2018.
Fitch analysts believe that at the end of 2016, the current account surplus will amount to 3.8 percent of GDP, to 9.3 percent of GDP in 2017, and will rise to 12 percent of GDP in 2018.
Moreover, Fitch has approved the long-term issuer default rating (IDR) of Azerbaijan at “BB+” with the forecast “negative”, and forecasted the short-term IDR both in foreign and local currencies at “B”.