Central Bank governor Hector Valdez Albizu is confident that the country will meet the 4.5% growth target set for this year. As the guest speaker at a National Association of Young Entrepreneurs (ANJE) lunch-lecture yesterday, Thursday 27 March, he said the country would benefit from the present US economic recovery, where inflation and unemployment are declining. He also commented that the DR would benefit from the global decline in commodities. The Monthly Economic Activity Index (MEAI) shows a GDP growth trend of 5%. Albizu observed that this is the result of more dynamic activity in the farming (up 8.1%), mining (up 29%), construction (up 20%), and tourism (up 10.3%) sectors.
He said that the last quarter of 2013 ended in 7.3%, up 3.3% compared to the same quarter in 2012. According to Albizu, the MEAI increased 8.1% during the first two months of the year, boosted by fiscal and monetary measures.
The Central Bank governor said that economic sectors needed to agree on a fiscal pact for a rational use of resources and an increase in government revenue so that the government no longer needs to borrow abroad.
He said that although it was too much to ask the government for a surplus in its first year, it has achieved a reduction in the fiscal deficit. He estimated that Net International Reserves would close at US$4.7 billion at year’s end, a US$310 million increase over 2013.
He forecast a 7% increase in exports stimulated by increases in gold exports and free zone exports in addition to local manufacturing.
Gobernador Bancentral ve buenas perspectivas economía RD en 2014