Brazil and Portugal will lead GDP growth among Portuguese-speaking countries’ (PSC) economies in 2021, while Angola is set for another drop, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In its latest World Economic Outlook forecasts, the IMF puts Brazil’s GDP growth in 2021 at 5.2 per cent, 0.1 per cent less than its previous estimation, but still the fastest pace among Portuguese-speaking countries.
Portugal is expected to grow 4.4 per cent this year.
Regarding African PSC, Angola’s negative growth, estimated at 0.7 per cent this year, is the only contraction predicted by the IMF.
Cabo Verde, with a 4 per cent growth, is expected to perform better, after a drop of almost 15 per cent last year, due to the pandemic.
Other PSC will grow below 4 per cent: Guinea-Bissau, with 3.3 per cent, Mozambique, at 2.5 per cent, and São Tomé and Príncipe, 2.1 per cent.
The IMF says that São Tomé and Príncipe grew 3 per cent last year and estimates an expansion of 2.1 per cent and 2.9 per cent for this year and next.
China is set to grow 8 per cent this year, one of the fastest rates in the world. Overall, the IMF revised downwards its forecasts for world economic growth in 2021 by a tenth, to 5.9 per cent.
“Global recovery continues, but momentum has weakened, crippled by the pandemic. Fuelled by the Delta variant, the number of deaths recorded by Covid-19 has grown by about five million and health risks abound, holding back a complete return to normalcy,” the IMF report said.
