Dhaka, June 26 -- Kick-starting structural reforms is imperative to spur economic growth, rebuild investor confidence and reverse the ongoing economic slowdown, but the new budget falls short on this account, experts and economists said.

Such conclusion was drawn at a meet Thursday after doing a last-minute anatomy of the interim government-crafted budget for the fiscal year 2025-2026 that goes into effect in few days now.

They said although the government set a 5.5-percent GDP-growth target for the next fiscal year, the projection appears overly ambitious in the context of persistent inflation, weak private investment, and a sharp fall in capital-machinery imports.

The remarks were made during a post-budget analysis event organised by...