By Javaughn Keyes
The World Bank has downgraded its outlook for economic growth in Jamaica.
The multilateral agency has released its regional and global growth outlook.
Jamaica is now expected to see economic growth of 0.8 per cent in 2024.
The latest outlook reflects a consensus that sectors are returning to their pre-pandemic output, made worse by lower productivity in some sectors linked to Hurricane Beryl in July.
The estimate in October 2024, reflects a downward revision from the 2 per cent growth forecast in April.
The World Bank has, however, upgraded its growth outlook for 2025, with gross domestic product (GDP) expected to increase by 2.2 per cent.
In April, the 2025 forecast was for 1.6 per cent growth.
From a regional perspective, GDP for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is estimated to grow by 1.9 per cent, moving up to 2.6 per cent in 2025.
The World Bank says the estimates are the lowest rates among all global regions, highlighting persistent structural bottlenecks.
The bank says for the region to accelerate growth, it must seize the current momentum coming from the US Federal Reserve's decision to lower interest rates, which it expects to provide some relief.
It also says inflation control is another positive development, due to the region's macroeconomic management.
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