BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 30. The World Bank has slightly raised its GDP growth projections for Croatia in 2025 and 2026, reflecting continued resilience in the face of broader regional challenges, Trend reports.
According to the latest outlook, Croatia's economy is expected to grow by 3.1 percent in 2025 - an upward revision of 0.1 percentage point from the January outlook. Growth is forecast to hold steady at 3 percent in 2026, up 0.2 percentage points.
The adjustments come amid a complex external environment, as Central Europe and the Western Balkans continue to face trade policy uncertainty, rising barriers, and indirect spillovers from euro area supply chains. While regional recoveries are expected to remain modest - with average growth in Central Europe projected at just 2.7 percent over 2025-26 - Croatia’s performance is poised to outpace the regional average.
The World Bank cites strong absorption of EU funds and a relatively diversified economic structure as supportive factors behind Croatia's solid medium-term outlook. However, the report also cautions that domestic political uncertainty and external vulnerabilities, including weak manufacturing activity in the euro area, could pose risks to sustained growth.
Croatia recorded a remarkable 12.6 percent GDP growth in 2021 as it bounced back from the pandemic. Growth slowed to 7.3 percent in 2022 and further to 3.3 percent in 2023. The economy is estimated to expand by 3.8 percent in 2024 before gradually moderating over the following two years.
