IMF raises its Asia growth forecast for 2024, highlights India’s growth and China stimulus as key drivers

The International Monetary Fund raised its Asia growth forecast for 2024 on Tuesday, as it remained optimistic about India’s growth and focused on the need for more stimulus from China.

The IMF now expects Asia’s economy to grow 4.5% this year, up 0.3 percentage points from six months earlier. Its forecast for 2025 remained unchanged at 4.3%.

“The outlook for Asia and the Pacific in 2024 has brightened: we now expect that the region’s economy will slow less than we previously projected as inflation pressures continue to dissipate,” Krishna Srinivasan, director of Asia and Pacific at the IMF wrote.

The upward revision reflects upgrades for China, the IMF said, where it expects policy stimulus to provide support.

It also called India “the world’s fastest-growing major economy,” where “public investment remains an important driver.” India is currently the world’s fifth-largest economy with GDP of $3.7 trillion and is aiming to become the world’s third-largest by 2027.

Source: CNBC