12 June 2024
The World Bank’s Myanmar Economic Monitoring Report released today stated that economic growth will continue to slow as it continues to face challenges due to macroeconomic instability and displacement by the conflict on manufacturing.
The value of domestic production is projected to be 1 percent in the year to March 2025, and although it is consistent with previous year forecasts, it shows a low of less than 2 percent predicted in December 2023.
It is projected that economic production will continue at 9 percent below the position it was in 2009, which is a significant gap compared to other country economies in the region.
Similarly, with inflation and unemployment likely to rise, the poverty situation will deteriorate across Myanmar. Power outages also hamper manufacturing industries, and a decline in income and household expenses are also known to impede consumption and retail consumption.
Now, at the beginning of 2024, 32 percent of the country’s population has returned to what was seen in 2015, and the rest of the population is at a high risk of poverty.
In addition to the direct impact on subsistence businesses, the conflict has disrupted border trade and domestic goods flow, and in the six months to March 2024, trade exports fell by 13 percent and imports by 20 percent compared to the same period last year.
