Central Bank predicts 2.1% GDP lift

The Central Bank has delivered its most upbeat assessment of the economy since the economy crashed in 2008 in its latest quarterly bulletin.

It forecasts GDP growth of 2.1% this year and 3.2% next year with GNP growing 2.2% and 2.5% over the same period. While the Central Bank has trimmed its forecasts for export growth from 4% to 3.5% this year, this has been compensated by an increase in the forecast for domestic demand from 0.9% to 1.5%.

Over the past few years, the economy has relied heavily on exports for growth, as the domestic economy remained floored by high debt levels and weak demand.