World Bank expects overall GCC growth of 2.6% in 2021, recovery to accelerate in 2022

Riyadh City

The World Bank (WB) expects Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries’ economies to return to the growth path, achieving an overall growth of 2.6% in 2021.

The GCC is forecast to witness an acceleration of strong recovery during 2022.

The recovery is due to the growth of non-oil sectors and rise in oil prices, the international financial institution said in a statement.

The acceleration in recovery coincides with the gradual curb of oil production cuts in accordance with the OPEC+ agreement, improvement of confidence in businesses and attraction of additional investments.

The World Bank indicated that the favorable conditions in the oil market reduced the imbalances that affected the GCC’s public finance and external accounts amid the recovery of export revenues.

The medium-term outlook is still subject to risks arising from the slowdown in the pace of the global recovery, renewed outbreak of the coronavirus and the fluctuations in the oil sector, it said.