NEW DELHI: India's 2021 economic output is expected to remain below the 2019 level despite COVID-19 vaccine's roll-out, according to a UN report. The country is estimated to record an economic growth of 7% in 2021-22, over a contraction of 7.7% witnessed in the previous fiscal, it said. Asia-Pacific economies are expected to grow by 5.9% in 2021, it added.
Observing that India entered the pandemic with subdued gross domestic product growth and investment, the report said, "Following one of the most stringent lockdowns in the world, the economic disruptions that the country experienced mounted in the second quarter of 2020." It added that a subsequent change in lockdown policies and success in reducing infection rates supported an impressive economic turnaround in the third quarter.
"However, the pace of recovery moderated in the fourth quarter with estimated year-on-year growth still close to zero. "Despite a robust reduction in new COVID-19 cases and the start of vaccine roll-out, India's 2021 economic output is expected to remain below the 2019 level," it added.
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