The topic of today’s press conference will be the budget of the Republic of Macedonia submitted by the Government of the Republic of Macedonia to the Macedonian Parliament. From the initial analysis we made, we will focus on the projections for revenues, expenditures, budget deficit, and the basic items that are forecasted, said VMRO-DPMNE EC member Trajko Slaveski on Friday.
Slaveski pointed out that the projections for the 2022 budget were made incorrectly.
“For the current 2021, which is the starting point for the projections, the Ministry of Finance predicts growth of 4.1%. But the high-frequency indicators for the third quarter of this year indicate that growth in the second half of 2021 is likely to be low or possibly negative. In September 2021, the growth of industrial production was -8%, while construction in July and August registered a double-digit decline. The automotive industry in the Republic of Macedonia is facing serious problems in the supply chains. All this indicates that growth in 2021 is likely to be significantly lower than expected. For 2022, the Ministry of Finance expects GDP growth of high 4.6%. It is unlikely that this projection will materialize. In the past five years since the exercise of power by SDSM and DUI, GDP growth has never exceeded 4%. At the same time, it is unclear how this growth will be achieved in conditions of major problems in the world with supply chains, the possible energy crisis and the still present health crisis. Inflation is an additional problem, and in the projections of the Ministry of Finance these problems magically disappear in the second half of 2022,” said Slaveski.
