June 15 (SeeNews) - Moldova's economy expanded by an annual 3.1% in real terms in the first quarter of 2017, with wholesale and retail being the main growth drivers, the country's statistical office said on Thursday.
Calculated at current prices, Moldova's gross domestic product (GDP) totalled 29.67 billion lei ($1.62 billion/1.45 billion euro) in the first quarter, the statistical office said in a statement.
Quarter-on-quarter, Moldova's GDP fell 0.7% based on seasonally adjusted data.
The gross value added in the economy rose by 3.7% on the year, mainly boosted by the wholesale and retail sector, which posted 2% growth. The gross added value (GVA) in the IT sector rose 3.8%, while in mining the GVA increased 1.2%.
Final household consumption in Moldova expanded by 3.7% year-on-year in the first quarter. Gross fixed-capital formation increased 3.3% on the year.
Exports rose by an annual 27.5%, while imports increased 17% in the first quarter.
Moldova's economy expanded by 4.1% in real terms in 2016, mainly on the back of successful performance of the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector.
In June, the World Bank said it has revised its forecast for Moldova's 2017 economic growth to 4.0%, up from 2.8% growth projected in January.
(1 euro =20.3966 Moldovan lei)