Greece will see a gradual recovery of its economy over the next 12 to 18 months, the head of the International Monetary Fund’s representation in the troika, Poul Thomsen, told a conference in Athens on Monday.

“Next year will be better,” Thomsen said at the Economist conference, where he said that Greece’s fiscal adjustment had been “exceptional”.

“I think the glass is half full,” said the IMF official, who added that Greece’s partners had already provided 185 billion euros in bailout loans and that they would continue to “do whatever is necessary” to support the Greek fiscal adjustment program “despite difficulties.”

Thomsen said that the Greek economy could experience an export-led recovery.