Belarusian economy up by 2 percent in Jan-Oct 2017

MINSK, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- Belarus' gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 2 percent year on year in January-October 2017, the National Statistical Committee of Belarus said Thursday.

The GDP growth accelerated, rising by 1 percent in the first half of this year, while GDP grew by the same amount over the remaining four months.

The Belarusian authorities expect that the GDP growth in 2017 will be 1.7 percent, while last year it decreased by 2.6 percent.

Earlier, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) improved Belarus' economic growth forecast to 1.7 percent in 2017.

With more robust economic policies and faster reforms, IMF believes that economic growth could rise to 4 percent in the medium term.