On April 10, 2026, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Laos held an Asian Development Outlook April 2026 meeting. Conflict in the Middle East challenges the resilience of the Asia and Pacific region. The meeting was chaired by Ms. Kavita Ayenga, Senior Economist at the ADB Laos Office, and attended by relevant stakeholders.
The April 2026 Asian Development Outlook (ADO) by the ADB reported to the meeting that: Lao PDR’s economic growth is expected to decline from 4.4% in 2025 to 4.0% in 2026 and rebound to 4.5% in 2027, with growth expected to come from the services, power generation, construction and regional connectivity sectors amid external risks.
In addition, the economy has stabilized following macroeconomic tightening, fiscal and trade balance adjustments, and a recovery in tourism and electricity exports. However, external vulnerabilities, high public debt servicing and structural constraints remain obstacles to medium-term growth.
Laos has made significant progress, with inflation falling to 7.7% in 2025 and expected to rebound slightly to 9.8% in 2026, supported by increased exports and foreign exchange reserves. With global risks rising, turning this progress into sustainable benefits for the Lao people will require maintaining fiscal discipline and accelerating state-owned enterprise reform.
2026: Electricity generation and mining, with an industry growth rate of 4.6%. Global uncertainty is starting to affect trade, tourism and investment, while public debt and guarantees remain high, accounting for around 82% of GDP.