Belize has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to a deep recession and worsened fiscal and external positions from already weak levels. The opposition People's United Party won the November 2020 elections by a wide margin, which gives the new government a unique opportunity to jump...

The Gambia is experiencing a second wave of COVID-19 cases. The vaccination campaign started in early March 2021, but the pace is slow, due to vaccine availability and hesitancy. Presidential and parliamentary elections are planned for December 2021 and April 2022, respectively

Recent economic developments. Despite a sizeable policy response, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact Rwanda's economy and social fabric, with output contracting by 3.4 percent in 2020. The vaccine rollout is expected to help counter the pandemic and support the economic recovery, but...

The Icelandic economy has been severely affected by the pandemic. Sharp tourism contraction and containment measures caused real GDP to plummet by 6.6 percent in 2020. A modest recovery will take hold in 2021. Recovery prospects in the tourism sector depend on control of the epidemic and...

As other emerging economies reliant on tourism (about 25 percent total contribution of tourism-related industries in GDP and employment), Croatia has been hit hard by the pandemic and two devastating earthquakes, leading the economy to contract by 8.0 percent in 2020. Vaccinations have been...

Among EU countries, Romania suffered a relatively shallow recession in the COVID-19 crisis, aided by macroeconomic easing. A strong recovery is projected in 2021. The new government is committed to balance continued pandemic-related support with the start of a medium-term fiscal consolidation...

Successful containment of COVID-19 and strong policy support have helped contain the health and economic fallout, and a strong recovery is underway. Growth in 2020 reached 2.9 percent, among the highest in the world. However, labor market conditions remain weak. Corporate balance sheets have...

The Canadian economy was operating at close to capacity and had strong policy buffers when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Economic and social restrictions put in place in March 2020 helped to mitigate the first wave of the virus, but they came at a significant cost. There was an unprecedented...

The Chilean economy has been hit by the pandemic while recovering from the social unrest in late 2019, requiring substantial adjustment of economic policies and the appropriate use of existing policy buffers. Following a sharp decline in mid-2020, economic activity started recovering in 2020H2...