Estonia's gross domestic product grew 9.8% in the third quarter compared with the same period a year earlier, Statistics Estonia said Monday.
Estonia's gross domestic product grew 9.8% in the third quarter compared with the same period a year earlier, Statistics Estonia said Monday.
The agency said GDP growth was boosted by the strongest household consumption in 14 years, which came on the back of wage increases. Spending on clothes and footwear, transport and recreation and culture increased the most, it said.
The financial intermediation, wholesale and retail trade, fishing and construction sectors recorded the biggest year-on-year growth in the quarter, it added.
Statistics Estonia noted that the rate of growth had slowed compared with the previous year.
This is in line with the Bank of Estonia's latest survey, which forecast that the country's GDP growth will ease to 8.4% in 2007, 6.5% in 2008, and 5.6% in 2009, on reduced private consumption, after breakneck 11.4% growth last year.
Last month, the International Monetary Fund predicted Estonian growth will slow to about 9% in 2007 due to reduced labor supply, rising costs and lower lending from banks
