IMAD has halved its 3% GDP growth forecast for 2020, Počivalšek says
Ljubljana, 12 March - The government think tank IMAD has halved its 2020 GDP growth projection for Slovenia after it had announced a 3% growth last autumn, Economy Minister Zravko Počivalšek announced at his parliamentary confirmation hearing on Thursday.
Ljubljana
Economy Minister Zdravko Počivalšek.
Photo: Nebojša Tejić/STA
File photo
The outgoing government of Marjan Šarec is to be briefed on IMAD's spring forecast today at what will likely be its last session before the handover to the Janez Janša government, where Počivalšek will stay on as economy minister. IMAD will then also present it to the public.
Last September, the government's macroeconomic think tank projected 3% growth for the Slovenian economy in 2020.
A slight correction for the 2020 forecast was expected as IMAD put the growth level for 2019 at 2.4% in the first estimate released on 28 February after it had projected 2.8% in the autumn.
IMAD said in February that the coronavirus epidemic had significantly increased uncertainties as regards economic trends in the coming months.
"The longer the duration of the epidemic, the bigger the impact," the institute's head Maja Bednaš said.