MADRID, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Spain's economy is likely to
grow around 1.6% in 2023, 0.3 percentage points more than
previously estimated, mostly due to a stronger-than-expected
expansion last year, Bank of Spain chief economist Angel Gavilan
said on Tuesday.
Gross domestic product grew a faster-than-expected 5.5% in
2022 as the country avoided a recession in the final quarter
amid a global slowdown.
The Spanish statistics institute has revised significantly
upwards the initial growth estimates for the first two quarters
of last year, while the economy grew 0.2% in the fourth quarter
from the previous quarter, above 0.1% expected by the central
bank.
"Mechanically, this new information would prompt an upward
revision in the GDP growth rate in 2023 by about 0.3 percentage
points," Gavilan said in a presentation posted on the Bank of
Spain's web page.
On Monday, the European Commission revised its growth
projections for Spain to 1.4% for 2023 from 1%.
For the first quarter of 2023, Gavilan also sees a
higher-than-expected growth rate at least similar to the fourth
quarter of last year.
The Bank of Spain is expected to publish its latest official
forecasts in March.
Gavilan also hinted at a 0.15 percentage points downward
revision of its inflation projections for 2023. Its current
outlook for EU-harmonised inflation stands at 4.9%.
(Reporting by Jesús Aguado; Additional reporting by Emma
Pinedo; Editing by Mike Harrison)
Messaging: Reuters Messaging:
jesus.aguado.reuters.com@reuters.net))
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