Shocking IMF forecast: Romania will post EU’s highest economic growth in 2011 – 5.1%

While the Romanian economy is struggling to pull out of recession and this year's economic growth has been revised downwards, from 1.3% to 0.8%, the IMF has launched a shocking prevision: in 2011, the Romanian economy will post no less than 5.1%, the highest level in the entire European Union. The data is included in the IMF's World Economic Outlook, quoted by Mediafax news agency. New estimates for the 2010 and 2011 macroeconomic indicators will be discussed by the Romanian authorities with the IMF delegation that is expected in Bucharest next Tuesday.

"Romania, when it dropped, it dropped worse than the neighbouring countries, and when it grew, it outgrew its neighbours. It would be ideal for Romania to grow slowly, but on a better, sustainable structure. The economic growth could be based on an improvement in consumer spending. And this would require that we complete the public sector adjustments this year," said Lucian Anghel, BCR's chief-economist.