IMF Says the German Economy will Improve

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is expected to release optimistic figures predicting an upswing for the Germany economy. According to a report originally published by the Italian news agency Ansa and repeated by Reuters, the IMF has revised its German growth rate predictions for 2004 from 1.5 percent to 1.7 percent. These figures, according to the report, will be made public during the G7 meeting, a gathering of economic ministers of the world's seven largest economies which starts in Boca Raton, Florida on Friday. In 2005, the IMF is expected to predict that the German economy will continue to grow at a rate of 2.1 percent. The IMF figures are similar to those of the German government, which has stated that the economy will grow between 1.5 and 2.0 percent in 2004.