BRATISLAVA, September 28, (WEBNOVINY) — The National Bank of Slovakia has increased its outlook for development of the Slovak economy in 2010. The central bank upgraded its prognosis of this year’s economic growth by 0.6 percentage point to 4.3 percent compared with the last prognosis from June. However, the bank moderated its outlook for next year when it set its prediction of GDP growth at 3 percent. The central bank also cut its expected GDP growth for 2012 by 0.3 percentage points to 4.1 percent.
The central bank explained that the prediction of economic growth has been increased with regard to the continuing favorable development of net exports in the second quarter of this year. Foreign demand should continue to help the Slovak economy for the rest of the year, as well. Governor of the National Bank of Slovakia Jozef Makuch told Tuesday’s news conference that the economy should post moderate q/q growth in the remaining two quarters, too, which should reflect in a higher GDP growth in 2010 compared with earlier predictions.
Next year, consolidation measures are expected to play a decisive role regarding economic growth. The National Bank of Slovakia took into consideration the planned package of austerity measures into its prediction that aim to reduce the general government deficit in 2011 by EUR 1.7 billion, as the government reported on September 17.
The National Bank of Slovakia has thus joined the Finance Ministry, which increased its economic growth prognosis for this year by 0.8 percentage point to 4 percent two weeks ago. The ministry also revised its economic growth outlook for 2011 from 3.8 percent from June to current 3.3 percent. The Finance Ministry considers incorporation of consolidation measures as well as improved expectations regarding development of international environment and positive results registered in the first half of 2010 in Slovakia and the Eurozone to be the main reasons for changes in the prognosis. According to a prognosis from spring of this year, the European Commission predicts that Slovakia will only register a 2.7-percent economic growth this year, which may speed up to 3.6 percent next year. The European Commission will update its prognoses in November.
Relatively positive development of the Slovak economy this year brought about almost a 5-percent economic growth in the first half of this year. Detailed data of the Statistics Office shows that real GDP growth in the second quarter of this year was 4.7 percent, which represented only a minimal slowdown compared with the first quarter. The Slovak economy contracted 4.7 percent last year.
SITA