• Burmese
Sunday, September 24, 2023
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
27 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Features
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Features
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home News Burma

IMF Gives Cautious Thumbs Up on Burma’s Growing Economy

by Simon Roughneen
May 22, 2013
in Uncategorized
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
IMF Gives Cautious Thumbs Up on Burma’s Growing Economy

Matt Davies of the IMF speaks to the press on Wednesday in Rangoon. (Photo: Simon Roughneen / The Irrawaddy)

4.3k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

RANGOON — The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Burma’s economy is on track to top 6 percent growth this year as the country’s “ambitious reform program is bearing fruit,” according to Matt Davies, the IMF’s deputy Asia and Pacific chief, speaking in Rangoon on Wednesday.

However the Burma government must balance two divergent challenges, warned the IMF—namely, addressing the country’s massive development needs while maintaining macroeconomic stability.

RelatedPosts

Myanmar Junta Massacres Sagaing Resistance Fighters

Myanmar Junta Massacres Sagaing Resistance Fighters

September 23, 2023
1.6k
Myanmar’s Civilian Government Calls on International Community to Help Unseat Junta

Myanmar’s Civilian Government Calls on International Community to Help Unseat Junta

September 23, 2023
862
Myanmar Junta Troops Loot Abandoned Magwe Town

Myanmar Junta Troops Loot Abandoned Magwe Town

September 23, 2023
756

The country’s growth prospects—Burma is widely depicted as one of the world’s last “untapped markets”—could also be threatened by limited management capacity, which the IMF said could “be strained by the rapid, broad-based economic transition.”

With natural resources—particularly gas revenues—key to growth, the IMF said Burma’s economy will grow at almost 7 percent during the 2013-14 fiscal year. Davies cited construction as another key growth sector, as the Burma government weighs the need to spend on infrastructure and social services, on the one hand, against pressures on macroeconomic stability and the need to prevent inflation from rising above 5.5 percent.

“For now, I think the Myanmar authorities have this balance about right,” said Davies, who added that the government’s 5 percent budget deficit is workable for the meantime, though he warned that this could require revision should regional or global economic conditions change.

The IMF commended the government for increasing health and education spending in its 2013 budget, but when asked by The Irrawaddy if the IMF believes the government should curtail military spending as an additional means of macroeconomic stabilization, Davies said the matter had not been discussed during the delegation’s two weeks in Burma.

The military budget for this year, though down in relative terms compared with previous years, increased in absolute terms to US$2.4 billion in 2013—12 percent of total government spending.

Burma’s military retains a dominant position in the country’s reforming political structures and is guaranteed a veto-wielding 25 percent of seats in the national legislature.

Otherwise, acknowledging that Burma’s future growth is contingent on improvements to its notoriously rickety infrastructure, Davies said that there was “a clear commitment by government to divert resources to infrastructure, whether out of the public budget or through public-private partnerships.”

Unreliable electricity, poor Internet services and a lack of good roads remain a deterrent to foreign investors, whose inputs are crucial to the country’s future growth, the Burma government believes.

President Thein Sein called for increased American investment in Burma during his trip to the United States earlier this week, while on Tuesday the Burmese and US governments signed a new trade and investment promotion deal.

While Burma awaits more foreign investment, the government has increased its income by improving tax collection, said the IMF. This should help Burma offset its dependence on natural resources, over time, as takings increase.

“Sustained increases in tax revenues are crucial to boost expenditure,” said the IMF, adding that “this requires broadening the tax base and improving compliance.”

The IMF suggested that the Burma government limit the tax incentives it is offering as carrots to foreign investors, as potential investors are more likely to be swayed by improvements to infrastructure and curbs on bureaucracy.

Last year’s liberalization of Burma’s long-hazy foreign exchange system has had a positive impact on the local economy and the attractiveness of its investment climate, added Davies. Prior to the move, the kyat, Burma’s currency, traded at two massively divergent rates, with the official level way above the market price.

“Formal and informal markets have converged and this is a great achievement,” he said. A new Central Bank law is due in mid-2013, a development that should buttress these recent improvements in Burma’s monetary policy, the IMF hopes.

Your Thoughts …
Previous Post

Burma’s Ex-Dictator and His Invisible Line

Next Post

On Salween River, Growing Signs that Work on Hat Gyi Dam Resumes

Simon Roughneen

Simon Roughneen

Contributor

Similar Picks:

General Close to Myanmar Junta Boss Placed Under House Arrest, Interrogated for Corruption

General Close to Myanmar Junta Boss Placed Under House Arrest, Interrogated for Corruption

September 14, 2023
20.2k
Three Rebel Army Chiefs Predict Rapid Fall of Myanmar Junta

Three Rebel Army Chiefs Predict Rapid Fall of Myanmar Junta

August 18, 2023
15.3k
Three Myanmar Police Chiefs Sacked

Three Myanmar Police Chiefs Sacked

September 15, 2023
13.1k
Myanmar Junta’s Central Bank Had $6.8 Bn in Reserves at 14 Int’l Banks in March

Myanmar Junta’s Central Bank Had $6.8 Bn in Reserves at 14 Int’l Banks in March

August 21, 2023
13k
Power-Drunk Junta Tries Selling Myanmar Beer at Gunpoint

Power-Drunk Junta Tries Selling Myanmar Beer at Gunpoint

September 14, 2023
11.2k
Myanmar Resistance’s Next Steps are Clear; It’s the Junta’s that Aren’t

Myanmar Resistance’s Next Steps are Clear; It’s the Junta’s that Aren’t

August 8, 2023
10.4k
Load More
Next Post
On Salween River

On Salween River, Growing Signs that Work on Hat Gyi Dam Resumes

China to Lend $580 Million for Sri Lanka Development Projects

China to Lend $580 Million for Sri Lanka Development Projects

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

Former Refugee Puts Plight of Myanmar Children Center Stage at Miss Universe Pageant

Former Refugee Puts Plight of Myanmar Children Center Stage at Miss Universe Pageant

6 days ago
1.9k
Myanmar Junta Boss Unlikely to Get BRI Forum Invite He Craves From China

Myanmar Junta Boss Unlikely to Get BRI Forum Invite He Craves From China

4 days ago
1.4k

Most Read

  • Myanmar Junta Massacres Sagaing Resistance Fighters

    Myanmar Junta Massacres Sagaing Resistance Fighters

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar’s Civilian Government Calls on International Community to Help Unseat Junta

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Myanmar Junta Troops Loot Abandoned Magwe Town

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Junta Watch: Belarus Seals Bloody Alliance With Regime; Resistance-Hit Naypyitaw Touted as Top Tourism Destination; and More

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Fighting Set to Intensify on Myanmar’s Border with China: Analysts

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Features
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.