Greece, Spain and Portugal's economies to shrink faster in 2013 than in embargoed Iran and war-torn Syria

Growers and shrinkers

The fastest growing and shrinking economies in 2013

MACAU will be the fastest growing economy this year, according to the latest estimates from our sister company, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU). Growth is expected to return to a faster pace as new casino projects are resumed and Chinese visitors (with rising wages) continue to raise gambling revenues. Mongolia, in second place, can also thank China for boosting its growth rate. China’s demand for minerals has driven investment in the Mongolia’s mining sector. This year Oyu Tolgoi, one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines will begin commercial production. China itself is set to grow by over 8% this year, and potentially more, depending on how the rest of the world fares. Meanwhile, Europe will still be ailing, with Greece leading the decline. Germany’s chancellor recently contended that the euro area crisis was “far from over.”

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