IMF issues warning on savings, investments

The International Monetary Fund revised slightly higher its forecast for Greek growth this year, from 2% in the initial estimates of the so-called Article IV mission last November, to 2.1% on Wednesday, in the final approval by its Executive Board. On the contrary, for 2023 it lowered its estimate, from 2.5% to 2.3%.

The government remains far more optimistic about growth this year than all the international agencies and banks that have published estimates, as it places it at 2.9%. For 2023, its estimate is for 2.4%. Also, the report predicts that inflation will ease from 4.2% in 2023 to 2.8% this year (against a government forecast of 2.6%) and reach 2% at the end of 2025.

The important takeaway from this IMF report, however, is that it sticks to its concerns about medium-term growth and inflation. On growth, a source of concern is the low level of savings and...