Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko attends a joint press conference at the end of the EU-Ukraine summit in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 24, 2016. (Xinhua/Gong Bing)

KIEV, Feb. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Ukrainian economy in the fourth quarter of 2016 has shown the best performance in the past five years, according to the preliminary estimates of the State Statistics Service released here Wednesday.

In October-December of 2016, Ukraine's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by at least 4.5 percent year-on-year, marking the fastest pace of growth since the fourth quarter of 2011, Igor Verner, head of the statistical agency, told a cabinet meeting.

Noting that all the key sectors of the economy showed a solid performance, Verner voiced the hope that the GDP growth will be further strengthened this year.

The Ukrainian economy has returned to growth in the first quarter of 2016 after a two-year recession, with the GDP expanding by 0.1 percent year-on-year. The growth accelerated to 1.4 percent in April-June and 2 percent in July-September.

In the fourth quarter of 2011, the Ukrainian economy grew by 5.1 percent.