The economy expanded at an annualized pace of 3.5% in 2013, a flash estimate of the country’s statistics institute showed Friday. It was the highest increase since 2008, when Romania’s economy grew by 7.3%.
The 2013 figure is well above a 2.8% growth forecast by the authorities and economists alike.
In 2012, the gross domestic product increased a meager 0.6%.
The fourth-quarter gross domestic product advanced 1.7% in seasonally adjusted data compared with a quarter earlier, the data showed.
Compared with the fourth quarter of 2012, Romania’s unadjusted GDP increased 5.2% in the last three months of 2013. In adjusted data, the annual growth was 5.1%.
The statistics institute is due to release a more detailed report on the 2013 GDP on March 5.
With the farming output unlikely to match last year’s harvest, Romania’s economic growth is expected to slow to around 2.2% in 2014. Domestic demand and better absorption of EU funds are forecast as the main growth drivers this year.