CYPRUS: IMF sees growth 0.2% in 2015, 1.4% in 2016

The IMF World Economic Outlook for 2015, released on Tuesday, foresees a 0.2% GDP growth for Cyprus this year and 1.4% in 2016.
The report, which was presented by the IMF’s top adviser Olivier Blanchard, comes before the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund, in Washington DC, which will take place on April 17-19.
It estimates that the consumer price index will be negative at -1% in 2015 and will return to positive rates at 0.9% in 2016.
For 2015, the IMF predicts that the deficit in the current account will remain at -1.9% (as a percentage of GDP) and will go down to -1.4% in 2016.
Finally, it estimates that unemployment will fall in 2015 to 15.9% (down from 16.2% in 2014) and a further percentage point in 2016 (14.9%).
For the eurozone, the IMF report expects that growth will be around 1.5% in 2015 reflecting restriction in supply and demand. Inflation for the eurozone is predicted to remain at 0.1% in 2015, a percentage below the ECB’s long-term target.