Croatia Economy Expands At Faster Pace In Q2

(RTTNews) - Croatia's gross domestic product grew at a faster pace in the second quarter partly reversing the slowdown seen in the first three months of the year, as household consumption and investments increased, preliminary estimates from the Croatian Bureau of Statistics showed on Wednesday.

The unadjusted GDP rose 3.4 percent year-on-year after a 2.9 percent increase in the first quarter. Growth was 3.9 percent in the fourth quarter and 3.7 percent in the June quarter last year.

Household consumption growth improved to 4.0 percent from 1.7 percent in the previous quarter. Government spending growth slowed to 2.4 percent from 5.8 percent. Growth in the gross fixed capital formation climbed to 5.2 percent from 4.5 percent. Export growth eased significantly to 1.6 percent from 6.0 percent and the increase in imports slowed steeply to 3.3 percent from 8.8 percent.

The seasonally adjusted GDP rose 1.2 percent from the first quarter, when it increased 0.4 percent. The adjusted year-on-year growth rate was steady at 3.2 percent.

The gross value added improved to 3.3 percent on a year-on-year basis from 2.7 percent in the first quarter. The improvement was mainly due to the increase in real value added in the wholesale and retail trade, transportation, storage, accommodation and food service activities, the CBS said.