Live
- ‘Get Set, Grow Summit 2024’ Focuses on Digital Detox for Families
- Stokes motivates his team to put in extra effort, says England pacer Potts
- From overcoming setbacks to leading India in U19 Women’s Asia Cup, Niki Prasad's amazing journey
- Driving Enterprise Security: Inside Venkata Reddy Thummala’s Leadership Journey
- Constitution debate: PM Modi hails 'Nari Shakti'; makes strong pitch for 'United Bharat’
- Abhijeet Bhardwaj: Revolutionizing Enterprise Analytics with Innovation and Expertise
- Bihar: Inquiry initiated against principal who went to buy veggies during school hours
- Press Sri Lankan Prez for release of Indian fishermen: TN Cong MP to EAM Jaishankar
- TN: DMK postpones executive meet due to heavy rains & Parliament session
- Porous silicon oxide electrodes can fix durability issues in batteries: Researchers
IMF Urges Spain to Keep Reform Focus Ahead of Elections
Highlights
Spain must stay the course on economic reforms if it wants to generate growth and reduce its sky-high unemployment rate, ahead of a year-end general election, the International Monetary Fund said Friday.
Spain must stay the course on economic reforms if it wants to generate growth and reduce its sky-high unemployment rate, ahead of a year-end general election, the International Monetary Fund said Friday.
.jpg)
"The clearer we are in not reversing existing structural reforms and fiscal consolidation, the stronger is the defence against any external risks," said Helge Berger, chief of the IMF mission in Spain following the publication of the body's annual report on the country.
The Washington-based IMF warned that backtracking on reforms would "create uncertainty and damage the recovery, especially if external conditions deteriorate."
Spain is benefiting from a weaker euro which helps boost exports and lower oil prices and is less exposed to "external contagions" such as the Greek economic crisis, it added.
The country emerged in 2013 from five years of on-off recession and the government forecasts the economy will grow by 3.3 percent this year -- more than twice the average forecast for eurozone countries.
Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's conservative government credits new rules adopted in 2012 for making it cheaper for firms to lay off workers and limiting the power of unions to negotiate collective-bargaining agreements across entire industries or regions for the recovery.
The IMF said Spain needed to adopt "additional reforms" to take advantage of the economic recovery and reduce the unemployment rate, which stood at 22.4 percent in the second quarter, the second-highest rate in the eurozone after that of bailed-out Greece.
It recommended further reforms of the labour market as well as measures to address the lack of competitiveness of Spanish firms.
The IMF maintained its forecast of economic growth of 3.1 percent in Spain this year, slightly below the 3.3 percent expansion predicted by the Spanish government.
It sees the Spanish economy, the eurozone's fourth largest, expanding by 2.5 percent in 2016 while the government predicts growth of 3.0 percent.
Rajoy's economic reforms have been criticised by opposition parties, especially new far-left party Podemos, a close ally of Greece's ruling Syriza, which made gains in May local elections.
Spain's ruling Popular Party lost power in several regions and cities, including Madrid, a long-time conservative bastion.
Next Story
ADVERTISEMENT
