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2011 GDP Growth Figure Bumped Up to 7.6%
2011 GDP Growth Figure Bumped Up to 7.6%
Photo: Postimees/Scanpix
Revised figures released today by Statistics Estonia have pegged the nation's 2011 GDP growth at 7.6 percent, up slightly from the 7.5 percent that it announced a month ago based on flash estimates.
The first three quarters of the year were characterized by high growth rate, mainly driven by a revving up of the manufacturing sector, followed by an abrupt slowdown that led to the first quarter-to-quarter contraction seen since early 2010.
However, the new numbers indicate that the fourth quarter drop wasn't quite so dramatic as initially believed, with GDP shrinking by just 0.2 percent compared with the 0.8 percent first calculated. Quarterly GDP at current prices came in at 4.22 billion euros, a 4.5 percent increase year-on-year.
In a separate statement, the Finance Ministry said that the slowdown at the end of last year can partly be attributed to an overall economic decline in Europe, but was also heavily influenced by a drop in Estonia's electronics exports and energy production, which had fueled so much of the overall economic growth a year earlier.
Statistics Estonia said that, by the fourth quarter, the role of electronics export as the main driver of GDP growth had been replaced by construction and information and communication activities.
Most institutions have predicted that weakening demand on the export market and the Euro crisis will bring far more modest growth for Estonia this year. In December, the Bank of Estonia estimated that the figure would come in at 1.9 percent, while Swedbank gave a more positive estimate of 2.7 percent a month later. The Ministry of Finance is expected to deliver its own forecast at the end of March.
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Originally Posted by Graham
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