The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has hailed the impressive growth in Myanmar but warned that the growth momentum will be placed at risk unless broad reforms are undertaken.

Following a June 4-17 fact-finding tour to Myanmar, head of the IMF delegation Matt Davies said Myanmar is well placed to implement economic reforms to extend the country’s period of rapid growth.

IMF predicted that the country’s economic growth will stand at 8.5 percent in the current fiscal year, a slight increase compared to the previous year’s 8.25 percent.

Myanmar’s inflation, which remains at around 6.5 percent annually, is forecast to expand at double-digit rates when money and credit flow into the country, the IMF said.

Myanmar President U Thein Sein, who is Chair of the Steering Committee for Reform, has called for faster progress during the third wave of the country’s reform, aiming to ensure a solid foundation for a new democracy and heighten living standards for the people.

The first waves of reform focused on the introduction of a multi-party democratic system and the transition from the old to a new mode of government, while the second phase dealt with strategies for executive, economic, political and social reforms.-VNA