Staikouras: Growth over 3% in 2023, positive growth rate in the coming years

By Tasos Dasopoulos

The estimation that the economy will grow at a rate of over 3% this year, with the prospect of a sustainable high growth in the coming years, was expressed today at the Capital Link conference in New York by the Minister of Finance, Mr. Christos Staikouras.

The Minister of Finance said that the first goal of economic policy is to have high and sustainable growth rates of the economy and referred to the economic growth of 8.3% that we had in 2021. For this year, he said that the forecast wants growth over 3% , while for the future the reforms and the investments of the Recovery Fund will pay “growth dividends” for many years, as he added.

He even mentioned six goals for economic policy in the coming period:

1. The achieving sustainable development, through increased investment and exports. In this regard, he said that our country is expected to have, according to the estimates of the European Commission, the highest – compared to our EU counterparts – percentage increases in 2022 and 2023.

2. The exit from the enhanced surveillance regimewhich is expected in the summer, as stated by the Executive Vice President of the European Commission Valdis Dobrovskis last Friday

3. The achieving a single-digit percentage of non-performing loans in the balance sheets of banks. As he said, at the end of December 2021, the total stock of NPEs decreased to 18.4 billion euros and the NPEs index fell to 12.8%, which is the lowest measurements since June 2010.

Indeed, in 2021, two out of four large systemic banks have achieved this goal.

4. The reducing poverty and inequality. In this regard, he noted that the proportion of the population at risk of poverty or social exclusion decreased in 2020.

He even explained that based on the available data, the inequality indicators show:

– strengthening the position of the middle class vis-των-vis the richer income groups,

– reducing the risk of poverty and social exclusion in the general population, stabilizing the position of the poorest income groups vis-.-vis the richer ones.

5. Transition to fiscal balance. By returning to primary surpluses and drastically reducing debt through high growth rates.

6. The recovery of the investment gradein 2023. Mr. Staikouras stressed that in the last 3 years, despite the successive crises we had to face, we have been upgraded by rating agencies eight times.

“Despite the difficulties and international instability, Greece is effectively implementing reforms and coherent policies that give the impetus to form a more resilient and inclusive economic landscape, achieving high and sustainable growth, creating many jobs,” he said. Minister of Finance.