BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 20. The anticipated growth in Central Asia and the Caucasus subregion is expected to decrease from 5.1 percent in 2022 to 4.6 percent in 2023 before slightly increasing to 4.7 percent in 2024, Trend reports.
According to the report received from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), this forecast has been adjusted upwards by 0.2 percentage points and 0.1 percentage points for 2023 and 2024, respectively.
This adjustment reflects a more favorable economic outlook in several countries, surpassing earlier expectations, the Bank noted.
As the ADB noted, the positive revision can be attributed to strong domestic demand in countries in the Caucasus, as well as Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, which exceeded initial projections.
Additionally, it is influenced by robust tourism and migrant flows from Russia, contributing to increased consumption in Armenia and Georgia. Fiscal stimulus measures in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, monetary policy easing in Armenia, Georgia, and Tajikistan, as well as higher inward money transfers in Georgia and Tajikistan, have also played a role.
Meanwhile, Kyrgyzstan has experienced a slowdown in gold production, leading to a downward revision in growth forecasts, and Turkmenistan has also seen a trimming of growth projections, the Bank pointed out.