Doha, April 17 (QNA) - The World Bank forecasted the growth of the Qatari economy by 3.3 percent in 2023 to be among the best growth rates in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the growth of gross domestic production (GDP) per capita by 2.2 percent.
In a report on the MENA economic prospects - April 2023, the Qatar Central Bank published some parts of it on its official Twitter account on Monday, the World Bank considered these indicators to be among the highest forecasted rates for the region's countries for 2023. The World Bank forecasted that the surplus of the fiscal balance would be about 6.5 percent of GDP, and the surplus of the current account balance would be about 15.9 percent of the GDP.
The report noted that economies in the MENA are expected to grow at a slower pace in 2023, as more than 10 percent food inflation adds pressure on poorer households and the impact of food insecurity can span generations.
The report also indicated that Inflation in the region rose dramatically in 2022, especially in countries that experienced currency depreciations. The report focused specifically on the impact of food price inflation on food insecurity, finding that eight out of 16 countries suffered from 10 percent food price inflation or higher, affecting poorer households the most as they spend more of their budgets on food than those that are better off.
The twice-yearly report found that average year-on-year food inflation across 16 MENA economies between March and December 2022 was 29 percent. This was higher than headline inflation, which rose on average to 19.4 percent year-on-year during that period, compared to 14.8 percent between October 2021 and February 2022, the month of the Russian-Ukrainian war. (QNA)