The economic research institute (Wifo) has revised downwards its forecast for 2025 to 2029. The Austrian economy will grow on average by just one percentage point per year, adjusted for inflation, it was announced on Friday.
In November, economists expected growth of 1.3 percent. The latest forecasts do not yet take into account the austerity measures of the likely future FPÖ/ÖVP government. These could lead to a weakening of “overall economic demand,” the report said.
For the current year 2025, Wifo expects a growth of 0.6 percent and in 2026 this should be 1.2 percent. After that, annual growth will be around one percent until 2029.
Here you can view the economic forecast in detail.
Fewer unemployed
Despite the relatively moderate economic growth, the research team expects unemployment to fall. Study author Josef Baumgartner justifies this with demographic developments in the coming years. The unemployment rate for this year is still calculated at 7.4 percent. By 2029, this is expected to drop to 6.2 percent.
The budget balance (excluding planned measures) is expected to average minus 4.2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) over the next five years. The government debt ratio would therefore rise to 89.2 percent of GDP in 2029. In the autumn, the average budget deficit was still 3.8 percent.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
