ANZ’s Pacific Economist Dr Kishti Sen believes Fiji’s domestic economy is in good shape despite recent challenges.

In his latest insight, “Don’t worry: No recession, the mainstay of growth remains in place,” the expert forecasts that our economy will grow by 3.4 percent this year, and it will hover around a three percent growth rate next year.

Sen stresses that the key driver of the economy in the second half of this year into 2025 and 2026 will be private investment and the tourism industry is slowly tapering off after bouncing back quickly following the pandemic.

He says the tourism industry’s contribution will slow down because Fiji is already at capacity when it comes to accommodation.

“So tourism will be there and thereabouts. But what I’m excited about is the performance of the domestic economy, and the domestic demand going forward. Yes, there’s been some softness in consumer demand because of a significant number of Fijians leaving Fiji to live overseas for at least 12 months. That’s been a drag on consumer demand. But I’m quite optimistic that comes the second half of the year, retail goods sales or turnover will pick up.”

Sen further explains that the private investment will pick up as investors are well-positioned now to pull the trigger on investment.

ANZ’s Pacific Economist Dr Kishti Sen (left), ANZ Country Head Fiji, Rabih Yazbek

He says this will create jobs and give households more spending power.

ANZ Country Head Fiji, Rabih Yazbek applauds Investment Fiji and the Ministry of Trade to enhance the ease of doing business efforts for inbound investors, which is landing Fiji in a good position.

“There’s a $500 million resort project taking place on the Coral Coast. Those developers have built resorts in quite a few countries around the world. They said the approval process and the planning process that was facilitated by Investment Fiji and the Ministry made that quite an easy investment decision for them.”

Sen says the Fijian government has assured the business community that it will not rush policy or legislative changes without consulting the private sector.

This commitment he says is expected to boost investor confidence and encourage investment in projects that are already approved and ready to proceed.