Indian economy will grow to 8.3% in 2021, says World Bank – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Indian economy is expected to expand 8.3 per cent in fiscal year 2021-22, a report by World Bank projected on Tuesday.
In its latest issue of Global Economic Prospects, the Washington-based global lender said that even though the forecast has been revised up by 2.9 percentage points, its masks significant expected economic damage from the second wave of Covid-19.
Besides, it projected the global economy to grow 5.6% this year, up from the 4.1% it forecast in January. It said that Covid vaccinations and stimulus given by various central governments will power the fastest worldwide expansion in nearly five decades.
Here are some highlights from the report:
* India will benefit from policy support, including higher spending on infrastructure, rural development, and health, and a stronger-than expected recovery in services and manufacturing.
* Growth in FY2022-23 is expected to slow to 7.5 per cent reflecting lingering impacts of Covid-19 on household, corporate and bank balance sheets; possibly low levels of consumer confidence; and heightened uncertainty
on job and income prospects.
* In 2020, India’s economy is estimated to have contracted by 7.3 per cent while in 2019, it registered a growth rate of four per cent, the World Bank said, adding that in 2023, India is expected to grow at 6.5 per cent.
* India accounts for nine-tenths of the upgrade to growth in 2021, as strong services activity more than offsets the
economic effects of the worsening pandemic.
* While US economy is expected to expand 6.8 per cent in 2021, up from the 3.5 per cent it forecast in January; China — the world’s No. 2 economy and the first to emerge from the coronavirus recession — is forecast to grow 8.5 per cent in 2021 after expanding just 2.3 per cent last year.