Page 12 - GEORptDec20

produced a relatively well-functioning and stable market economy”.
The document notes that Georgia ranks high in the 2020 World Bank Ease of Doing Business index and in the Heritage Foundation’s 2020 Economic Freedom Index.
It says: “Georgia ranks seventh in the 2020 World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index and twelfth in the Heritage Foundation’s 2020 Economic Freedom Index. Fiscal and monetary policy are focused on low deficits, low inflation, and a floating real exchange rate, although the latter has been affected by regional developments, including sanctions on Russia, and other external factors, such as a stronger dollar. Public debt and budget deficits remain under control. However, global challenges posed by COVID-19 and measures needed to mitigate the spread of the virus have placed significant pressure on the domestic currency and the local economy.”
3.0​ ​Macro Economy
Georgia - Main Macro Indicators 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019* Q1 2020* Q2 2020
GDP real growth (y/y, %)
3.0 2.6 4.8 4.8 5.1 2.2 -12.3
GDP per capita (at current prices), 4,012.6 4,062.1 4,358.5 4,722.0 4,763.5 1,017.1 961.2 USD
GDP per capita (at current prices), GEL
9,109.4 9,613.9 10,933.9 11,968.0 13,428.9 2,976.6 3,016.0
GDP at current prices, (USD bn)
14.9 15.1 16.2 17.6 17.7 3.8 3.6
GDP at current prices, (GEL bn)
33.9 35.8 40.8 44.6 50.0 11.1 11.2
GDP deflator (y/y, %)
5.8 2.6 8.5 4.4 6.6 6.1 6.3
Source: Geostat
3.1 ​Macroeconomic overview
Georgia’s GDP contracts 3.9% y/y in October
Preliminary figures show Georgia’s GDP contracted by 3.9% y/y in October following the annual decline of only 0.7% y/y seen in September, a figure that had prompted expectations of a robust recovery.
The October decline, estimated by Georgia’s statistics office Geostat in a flash report subject to later revision, means that in the first 10 months of the year, Georgia’s economic output fell by 5.1% y/y.
Estimated real growth year on year was in October negative for almost all activities. Financial and insurance activities showed some gains.
An International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff team led by Mercedes Vera Martin, which conducted a Georgia virtual mission in November, maintained its 5% GDP decline forecast for Georgia in 2020 issued in October, but revised downwards its forecast for the recovery next year to 4.3% from 5%, citing the effects of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the region and the rising number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases in Georgia.
12​ GEORGIA Country Report ​December 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com