The Athens-based Foundation for Economic & Industrial Research (IOBE) organization on Tuesday predicted lower growth rates for the Greek economy than the government and institutional creditors, pointing to a 0.3 to 0.5-percent recession for the ongoing year, although it echoed forecasts for a 2017 recovery.
The Athens-based Foundation for Economic & Industrial Research (IOBE) organization on Tuesday predicted lower growth rates for the Greek economy than the government and institutional creditors, pointing to a 0.3 to 0.5-percent recession for the ongoing year, although it echoed forecasts for a 2017 recovery.
In its quarterly report on the state of the Greek economy, IOBE lowered its recessionary outlook from a previous -1 percent forecast for 2016, which was made in July, citing a boost in private consumption over the second half of the year and a rise in investments.
For 2017, IOBE also predicts an economic recovery of between 1.5 and 2.0 percent, again based on an increase in private consumption, lower unemployment and rekindled investments. Moreover, the research organization said a pending initiative to tackle the massive problem of non-performing loans in Greece will boost growth.
Finally, in presenting the results, IOBE President Takis Athanasopoulos said Greece ranks 86th out of 138 countries surveyed in terms of competitiveness, according to the annual report by the World Economic Forum.
The woeful position for a Eurozone and EU member-state is compounded by the fact that Greece fell five spots from 2015’s standings.