Belarus reports slight economic recovery in 2023

June 17, BPN. Belarus’ economy grew slightly in the first five months of 2023 after shrinking last year amid political uncertainty and international sanctions, official data indicates.

The Belstat statistics service said the gross domestic product rose 0.9 percent from January to May compared to the same period in 2022, reaching 79 billion rubels (over $30 billion).

The economy contracted by 4.7 percent in 2022.

In November, Alaksandr Łukašenka set a target of 3.8 percent GDP growth for this year.

However, the World Bank projected in a spring report that Belarus’ economy would expand by only 0.6 percent in 2023.