Romania's GDP advances 5pct in Q1 2019 from Q1 2018

Romania's Q1 2019 Gross Domestic Product (GDP), as against the same quarter of 2018, recorded an increase by 5.0 percent for the unadjusted series and by 5.1 percent for the seasonally adjusted series, according to data with the National Statistics Institute (INS) released on Wednesday. In Q1 2019, as compared to the previous quarter, the Gross Domestic Product increased by 1.3 percent, seasonally adjusted series. "As a result of the revision of the unadjusted series by including the estimates for Q1 2019 in the quarterly series, the seasonally adjusted series were re-estimated, the volume indices being revised as compared to the version published in the Press release 83 of April 8, 2019 as following: the results for the second quarter of 2018, as compared to the previous quarter, had been revised from 101.3 percent to 101.2 percent; the results for the third quarter of 2018, as compared to the second quarter of 2018, had been revised from 101.4 percent to 101.5 percent; the results for the fourth quarter of 2018, as compared to the previous quarter, had been revised from 100.9 percent to 101.0 percent," according to INS. Under the 2019-2022 Convergence Programme published by the Ministry of Finance, an economic growth of 5.5 percent is estimated for 2019 as a result of a positive contribution of domestic demand (6.1 percentage points) and a slightly negative contribution of net exports (-0.6 percentage points). A week ago, the European Commission downwardly revised to 3.3 percent the growth forecast for the Romanian economy this year, while in January the EU executive forecast an increase by 3.8 percent in Romania's gross domestic product. Early this April, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) downwardly revised to 3.1 percent, from 3.4 percent, its estimates of the Romanian economy's development in 2019. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development estimated on May 8 that the Romanian economy would report a 3.2-percent increase this year, as against a 3.6-percent advance forecast in November. AGERPRES (RO - editor: Nicoleta Gherasi; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)