September 18 (SeeNews) - Moldova's economy expanded by 2.5% year-on-year in real terms in the second quarter of 2017, mainly on the back of the successful performance of the wholesale and retail sector, the country's statistical office said on Monday.
Calculated at current prices, the country's gross domestic product (GDP) totalled 34.25 billion lei ($1.95 billion/1.63 billion euro) for the three months through June, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement.
Quarter-on-quarter, Moldova's GDP grew by 0.7%, according to seasonally adjusted data.
Growth in the second quarter was mainly boosted by the wholesale and retail sector, which expanded by 1% year-on-year. The construction sector grew by 0.2% on the year, while the IT sector expanded by 0.1%.
Agriculture and public administration had the biggest negative impact on GDP growth, dropping by 0.5% and 0.1% on the year, respectively.
Final household consumption in Moldova expanded by 3.4%, while gross fixed-capital formation rose 1.4% on the year in the second quarter.
Exports rose by an annual 3.2% and imports fell by 8.3% in the second quarter.
In the first half of 2017, Moldova's GDP expanded by a real 2.8% year-on-year, reaching 63.9 billion lei. The wholesale and construction sectors led the rise, and final household consumption grew 3.5% on the year.
Exports rose 6.5% on the year in the six months through June, while imports fell 10.6%.
Moldova's economy grew by a revised 2.9% on the year in the first quarter of 2017.
In May, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) increased its projections for Moldova's economic growth to 3.0% in 2017 on the back of lower inflation and international financial assistance.
Moldova’s GDP grew by 4.1% in 2016, supported by growth in agriculture output and in household consumption.
(1euro=21.01 Moldovan lei)