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Estimates and Forecasts for GDP Growth in the ESCWA Region, 2007-2008

Symbol: 
E/ESCWA/EAD/2008/Technical Material.1
Issued in: 
2008

In 2007, the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) region registered its fifth consecutive year of robust growth in the wake of a continuous increase in oil prices and a supportive global macroeconomic environment. For the region as a whole, real growth of gross domestic product (GDP) was an estimated 5.4 per cent in 2007, which is significantly above the world average of 3.7 per cent, albeit below the projected average of 6.9 per cent for developing countries. The region’s strong economic expansion is likely to continue in 2008, with real GDP growth forecast at 5.6 per cent based on persistently high oil prices and strong domestic demand in most ESCWA member countries.