JOIN US Asian Development Bank (ADB), on Thursday warned that a delay in land and taxation reforms could hinder economic growth in India although it retained the country’s economic growth projection at 7.8 per cent for the current fiscal.
ADB, however, lowered China’s growth forecast to 7 per cent this year, from an earlier forecast of 7.2 per cent.
“The risks to growth prospects could emerge from further delay in passing some legislations crucial to easing land acquisition for industry and to implementing a uniform goods and services tax (GST),” it said in its supplement to the Asian Development Outlook.
“India’s growth forecasts remain at 7.8 per cent for this fiscal year and 8.2 per cent for next, supported by a healthy monsoon and new investment — and assuming concrete progress on reform,” ADB said.
According to ADB, with a supportive monetary and declining inflation rate, India’s growth rate could further increase to 8.2 per cent in 2016. A pick-up in capital expenditure is also expected.
Meanwhile, the bank reduced its growth forecasts for developing Asia to 6.1 per cent in 2015 and 6.2 per cent in 2016 as against 6.3 per cent projected earlier for both the years.
ADB lowered the growth outlook for major industrial economies — the US, euro area and Japan — to 1.6 per cent, from the March projection of 2.2 per cent for 2015.