Timor-Leste’s Economy Returns to Growth but Country Needs New Engine of Growth for Sustainable Future, New World Bank Report Says
Dili, June 29, 2022 –Timor-Leste’s non-oil economy is projected to expand 3.0 percent in 2022, underpinned by a significant increase in government spending and investment, as well as rebounding private consumption supported by the gradual opening of borders. Increasing prices of food, fuel and electricity driven by the war in Ukraine could be long-lasting and may impact future growth prospects, according to the June 2022 edition of the World Bank’s Timor-Leste Economic Report.
Buffeted by the twin shocks of COVID-19 and Tropical Cyclone Seroja, the non-oil economy grew by 1.5 percent in 2021. A record-high budget with expenditure of nearly 90 percent of GDP bolstered government consumption. A series of fiscal stimulus measures supported employment and incomes, allowing households…
