Georgian economy grows 6.8% y/y in January-September, says Statistics Office

The Georgian economy grew 5.1 percent in September year-on-year, while the average real gross domestic product growth between January and September equalled 6.8 percent, the National Statistics Office said on Tuesday, Azernews reports, Agenda.

The Office said the growth was determined "significantly" by the estimated real growth in financial and insurance sector, construction, trade, accommodation and food service industry, while decline was registered in manufacturing, transportation and storage, and real estate sector.

The World Bank earlier this month said it had revised the 2023 growth forecast for Georgia upward to 5.9 percent. The Asian Development Bank also raised its growth forecast for 2023 from the earlier 4.5 to 6 percent, saying "high foreign direct investment and lower unemployment" had supported “strong growth” for the Georgian economy.

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili last month said the Government had raised its growth forecast for 2023 from the earlier five to 6.5 percent and was adjusting the state budget with a ?500 million ($184.86mln) increase based on the increased growth rate.

The PM also said the country’s budget for 2024 was being planned with 5.2 percent growth.