North Macedonia’s economy expanded by 4.3% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2026, up from 3.1% in the previous quarter and marking the strongest growth since Q4 2024. The main drivers were household consumption (3.3% vs. 2.6% in Q1) and gross investment (16.5% vs. 1.5%). Net external demand also supported growth, as both exports (10.4% vs. 6.2%) and imports (12.5% vs. 5.2%) increased. In contrast, growth in final consumption slowed (2.8% vs. 3.2%), as did public spending (0.8% vs. 5.5%).
On the production side, the strongest gains were recorded in mining and quarrying (3.9% vs. -0.8%), manufacturing (4.1% vs. -0.2%), and construction (21.9% vs. 7.2%). Output declined in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries (-0.1% vs. 2.9%) and in public administration and defense (-1.3% vs. 2.5%). On a seasonally adjusted quarterly basis, GDP growth accelerated to 1.3% in Q2 from 0.4% in Q1, the fastest pace since Q1 2014.
