ZAGREB, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Croatian Finance Minister Zdravko Maric commented on Wednesday the latest European Commission (EC) forecast on Croatian economy is similar to the government's projections.
In the latest macroeconomic forecast published on Wednesday, the EC expects 2.8 percent GDP growth in Croatia this year.
According to the forecast, personal consumption should remain the main driver of growth, while the highest risk continues to be the restructuring of Agrokor, the biggest private company in the country that was hit by a debt crisis.
In its provisional winter forecast, the EC estimates that the GDP growth in 2017 would amount to 3.2 percent while predicting economic growth of 2.7 percent in 2019.
"The main drivers and potentials and risks are almost entirely identical to what the government has written in its projections," Maric told reporters on Wednesday. He emphasized that structural reforms in the southeastern European country are necessary to raise potential growth rates.
Maric said that he didn't see a threat from the Agrokor crisis and current restructuring that is happening in the company. "We are all well aware of the final phase of financial and business restructuring. Those who are involved and responsible for restructuring should do it in a way that would be least negative so all the bad risks do not materialize", he said.
Croatian economy entered its fourth year of recovery in 2018. The EC says that growth is expected to remain solid and broad-based. Other institutions have predicted similar growth, such as Croatian National Bank that is estimating 2.9 percent, the International Monetary Fund 2.8 percent and the World Bank 2.6 percent.
