MINSK, 19 January (BelTA) - Achievements of 2021 make it possible for Belarus to forecast its further economic development with greater confidence, Belarus' Deputy Economy Minister Dmitry Yaroshevich said as he commented on the country's economic performance in 2021 on 18 January, BelTA learned from the press service of the Economy Ministry.
According to Dmitry Yaroshevich, the GDP growth made up 102.3%, 0.5% above the forecast figure. “Behind the above-target achievements is a huge layer of comprehensive work that business and industry conducted to adapt to the difficult external environment and occupy the market niches with their products,” Dmitry Yaroshevich stressed.
According to him, the driving force throughout the year was industry, which demonstrated an increase of 6.5%. Maintaining positive dynamics enabled the service sector to make a comparable contribution to GDP, primarily thanks to the IT, trade and transport sectors. “Foreign trade in goods and services is convincing evidence of the increased efficiency of enterprises. In January-November 2021, Belarus reached a record high trade surplus of almost $4 billion. As a result, the financial performance of organizations significantly improved. Net profit increased 2.5 times compared to January-November 2021. Profitability of sales reached 8.4%. The total loss of unprofitable enterprises has decreased fourfold,” the deputy minister said.
“These successes became a solid foundation for an economically sound growth of real incomes of the population - by 2%, which is also above the forecast. The growth was ensured, firstly, through increased wages in the real sector, and secondly, through additional support from the state for public sector employees and socially vulnerable citizens. Thus, the achievements of 2021 allow us to more confidently predict the further development of the country and implementation of the five-year program approved by the Belarusian People's Congress,” said Dmitry Yaroshevich.
