ADB reveals forecasts on Azerbaijan’s economy growth

By Azernews

By Kamila Aliyeva

Azerbaijani economy will grow 1.7 percent in 2018 and 2 percent in 2019, the updated report of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) published on September 26 said.

The forecasts for the country’s economy growth remained unchanged, according to the bank.

In January-June 2018 Azerbaijan's economy grew by 1.3 percent, while in the same period of the previous year a 1.3 percent decrease in GDP was recorded. The authors of the report emphasize that growth for the first six months of this year was provided by increase in all sectors of the economy.

For example, compared to the six months of last year, in the first half of 2018 the oil sector grew by 0.1 percent, and the non-oil sector - by 2 percent. The industrial sector of Azerbaijan went up by 1.2 percent, agriculture - by 7.6 percent, mainly due to the expansion of cotton growing in the country.

The bank also improved the outlook for the current account surplus of the balance of payments from 6.9 to 7.9 percent of GDP in 2018 and from 6.2 to 10.9 percent of GDP in 2019.

Azerbaijan joined ADB on December 22, 1999 and the country’s share in the bank’s capital is 0.5 percent.

Since 2003, the bank has approved the allocation of loans to Azerbaijan in the amount of more than $4 billion dollars for the implementation of more than 30 projects in the public and private sectors. The amount of technical assistance provided by the bank to Azerbaijan is almost $30 million.