The UAE’s economic growth is projected to take a faster route in 2020 driven by rising business optimism, fiscal stimulus and higher government and private sector spending in projects related to Expo 2020 Dubai.
The latest forecasts from international organisations such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Institute of International Finance (IIF) point to a significant pick-up in growth momentum next year.
Recently the IMF revised its growth forecast for the UAE upwards following its Article IV Consultation with UAE authorities. The IMF team, after discussions with the UAE government concluded that the country’s GDP will grow up to 3 per cent next year from a relatively modest growth of slightly above 1 per cent in 2019, estimated UAE GDP growth for 2020, according to the IMF.
The IIF has also forecast the growth momentum picking up further through 2020.
“We expect non-hydrocarbon real GDP growth to pick up to 1.7 per cent in 2019 and 2.2 per cent in 2020, supported by Abu Dhabi’s three-year stimulus package and Dubai’s spending linked to Expo 2020,” said Garbis Iradian, chief economist, Middle East and North Africa (Mena) of the IIF.
In its latest Regional Economic Outlook (REO) report in October the IMF had given a provisional forecast of 2.5 per cent GDP growth for 2020.
