TRINIDAD-ECONOMY-IMF project modest growth for Trinidad and Tobago

WASHINGTON, CMC – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says the economy of Trinidad and Tobago is poised for a modest recovery in 2013, after disappointing growth in 2012 that was due largely to supply constraints, including maintenance operations in the energy sector and an industrial dispute in the non-energy sector. The IMF is projecting that the real gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 1.5 per cent in 2013, with risks slightly to the downside, should development spending be under-executed. It said headline inflation rose to 9.3 per cent in 2012, but core inflation, which excludes food prices, remained moderate at 3.1 per cent, and has since fallen further to 2.2 per cent in March 2013. Unemployment is low at about five per cent percent, but underemployment remains significant.