"The economy is expected to deepen the recession this year due to the double shock of the pandemic and low oil prices, but for the year the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is expected to recover in line with the economic recovery, even if it maintains marginal growth," reads the most recent analysis of African economies, to which Lusa had access.
In the report, analysts write that "the increase in public debt in a context of devaluation of the kwanza and danger of financial default threatens macroeconomic stability and harms the prospect of economic evolution".
In the document, FocusEconomics warns that in the first quarter, the economy is expected to have fallen three times the speed of the last three months of last year, registering from January to March a contraction of 1.8 percent compared to the 0.6 percent registered from October to December 2019.
"The acceleration of the economy's downturn followed a double-digit contraction in the trade sector resulting from the state of emergency, which weighed heavily on national economic activity," the document notes.
Looking beyond the second quarter, the latest available data, FocusEconomics estimates that the recession has slowed since June, but not enough to allow positive growth this year.
