Chennai, Nov 13:
India could achieve its estimated medium-term growth potential of 6.8 per cent by accelerating productivity improvements, encouraging greater private investment and creating more high-quality employment opportunities, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday.
In its October edition of the World Economic Outlook, the IMF revised India’s medium-term potential growth estimate upwards to 6.8 per cent from the earlier projection of 6.5 per cent.
Explaining the upward revision, IMF Director of Communications Julie Kozack said the assessment took into account India’s favourable demographic profile, the scale and growth of its domestic market, and continued progress in structural reforms.
She stressed that further improvements in productivity would be essential to sustain the country’s growth momentum. ‘Like many countries, we are encouraging India to continue with reforms, particularly those aimed at boosting productivity growth,’ Kozack told reporters.
She identified three key priorities for India: raising productivity, expanding private-sector investment and speeding up the generation of quality employment. Progress on these fronts would help the country realise its medium-term economic potential, she said.
Kozack added that these issues would also form part of the IMF’s forthcoming Article IV consultations with India, through which the multilateral institution assesses the country’s economic and policy developments.
The latest revision follows an improvement in the IMF’s near-term growth outlook for India. Last month, the Fund raised its GDP growth forecasts to 7 per cent for both FY27 and FY28. Its July projections had placed growth at 6.4 per cent for FY27 and 6.7 per cent for FY28.
Reaffirming India’s importance to the global economy, Kozack said the country continued to be a major contributor to worldwide growth. ‘India remains a key growth engine for the world. The economy has strong fundamentals and has demonstrated considerable resilience,’ she said.
The revised potential growth estimate reflects the IMF’s assessment of India’s long-term economic capacity, while the Fund’s emphasis on productivity, investment and employment highlights the reforms needed to sustain that trajectory.