Washington, Oct 13 The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised India’s growth forecast to 7 per cent in 2026-27, higher than the 6.4 per cent in July, on the back of resilient domestic demand and robust services activity, placing the country among the fastest-growing major economies.
“India remains among the fastest-growing major economies, with growth in 2026 projected at 7.0 per cent,” the IMF said in the World Economic Outlook (WEO) report released at its annual meeting in Bangkok.
“This reflects stronger-than-expected momentum, supported by resilient domestic demand and robust services activity,” the report said.
It said India is projected to grow at 7 per cent in 2027-28, up from the July estimate of 6.7 per cent.
It said India’s growth remained robust, underpinned by domestic demand and services, despite higher oil prices.
On the medium-term outlook, the IMF said India stands out with upward revisions, reflecting sustained momentum and growing evidence of stronger growth potential supported by favourable demographic dynamics, a large and expanding domestic market, and continued structural reforms.
According to the IMF, global output is projected to expand at an average annual pace of 3.2 per cent in 2028–31, a persistently lacklustre performance compared with the pre-pandemic (2000–19) historical average of 3.7 per cent.
Relative to that, in January 2026, the medium-term outlook has become increasingly uneven, with downgrades concentrated among economies directly affected by the conflict in the Middle East and energy-importing emerging market and developing economies elsewhere, excluding India.
On trade, the WEO said new agreements “such as the EU’s recent trade agreements with India and MERCOSUR (South American regional economic and political integration bloc)… or the United Kingdom’s agreement with India” could lower tariff and non-tariff barriers, help economies adjust to recent trade policy changes and strengthen supply-chain resilience.
(PTI News)
