September 21 (SeeNews) - Croatia's economy is estimated to have expanded in the double digits again in the third quarter, following a 16.1% annual growth rate in the second quarter, local think-tank Institute of Economics Zagreb (EIZ) said.
The economic activity at the beginning of the third quarter compared to the second quarter of this year shows a mild slowdown, the institute said in a statement on Monday.
The estimates are based on the values of the EIZ Coincident Economic Index (CEIZ) for July, when the index rose 5.3 percentage points compared to July 2020 and declined by 0.53 percentage points compared to June 2021, the think-tank said in a statement.
Looking at the components of the index for July 2021, compared to the same month of 2020, increases were registered in all four components: VAT revenue, volume of industrial production, retail trade and tourist arrivals.
However, compared to June 2021, the de-seasonalised value of the index declined in all components in July, with the exception of tourist arrivals.
For a more precise estimate of the economic developments in the third quarter, it would be necessary to wait for the release of the index values for August and September, EIZ noted.
Compared with the first quarter of this year, Croatia's gross domestic product (GDP) decreased by 0.2% in the April-June period.
The government expects Croatia's economy to expand by around 7% this year, following an 8.4% contraction last year.