The Left against Mickoski: 4.3 percent GDP growth does not reflect the rising cost of living

The Left has responded to Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski, who highlighted GDP growth of 4.3 percent. According to the party, the economic figures presented by the government do not reflect the reality faced by citizens.

The response states that while Mickoski speaks of progress in the statistics, families are paying increasingly more for food and basic products. The party assesses that GDP growth, taken on its own, is not enough to measure living standards because it does not show how the wealth created is distributed, whether citizens’ incomes have increased, whether public services have improved, or whether the cost of living has fallen.

As another indicator of the economic situation, The Left points to the way household consumption is distributed. The fact that most income is spent on food and basic products, it says, demonstrates that economic growth is not translating into a higher standard of living.

The party considers the presentation of GDP growth without providing a fuller picture of the economy to be misleading. It claims that a considerable share of foreign companies’ profits is transferred abroad, while economic activity is sustained through new borrowing.

Concerns have also been raised about the way industrial data are presented. According to The Left, the manufacturing industry is singled out as evidence of progress, while difficulties in other important sectors, including energy, are overlooked.

The Left also rejects the claim that the country is experiencing “galloping growth,” emphasizing that the state continues to borrow money to meet obligations incurred earlier.

“Today, Macedonia borrows to repay previous debts – new loans and Eurobonds are taken out to service old obligations,” the response from The Left states.

According to the party, a sustainable economy cannot be built by taking on new debt to repay old debt. Productive public investment, domestic production, and efficient public enterprises are listed by the party as necessary prerequisites for economic development.

“Economic success is not measured by how beautifully the prime minister presents the statistics at a press conference, but by whether citizens are living better,” the statement from The Left concludes.