♦ The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has projected India’s economic growth at 7% for the financial year 2024-25 and 7.2% for FY2025-26. It stating that the country’s economy remains strong. In its latest Asian Development Outlook (ADO), ADB reported that a favorable monsoon across most regions of India is expected to lead to strong agricultural output, positively impacting the rural economy in FY2024.

♦ The report said, With the government’s fiscal consolidation efforts, central government debt is projected to decrease from 58.2% of GDP in FY2023 to 56.8% in FY2024. The general government deficit, which includes state governments, is expected to fall below 8% of GDP in FY2024.

♦ India’s current account deficit is forecast to be 1.0% of GDP in FY2024 and 1.2% in FY2025, down from the previous estimate of 1.7% for both years. This reduction is attributed to improved exports, lower imports, and strong remittance inflows.