Floods in Bosnia and Serbia could have a serious effect on the economies of the two Balkan countries, warned the director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for Europe, Asim Hussein.
He also noted economic growth in most countries in the region. "We think that in general the Balkan region will register economic growth," he said in Washington.
According to him, the main task of the region, and especially for the more indebted Croatia and Serbia, is to provide loans to the economy, as well as to attract investment from abroad. Hussein said the two countries' debt would slow their economic recovery.
The catastrophic floods are an additional cause for concern, he said, citing the difficult situation in Ukraine and increased EU sanctions against Russia. According to him, the economy in Bulgaria, Greece, Romania and Hungary suffers from a high level of corruption, BGNES reported.
The IMF representative predicted that the highest growth (of 5%) would be in Eastern Europe. Leading countries in the region will be Poland and Latvia, which are recovering extremely fast from the severe economic downturn in 2008.
Source: Insurance.bg