BUCHAREST, May 16 (Xinhua) -- The higher-than-expected growth in the first quarter of 2017 is a confirmation of the economic measures taken by the government, Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu said in a statement on Tuesday.
The 5.7-percent growth registered in Romania is the highest in the European Union in the first quarter of this year, exceeding the expectations of analysts and international bodies, Grindeanu said.
The government will continue to support the economic growth trend by stimulating public investment, accelerating the European funds drawing, improving the tax collection and curbing tax evasion, he said.
"For 2017, we intend to attract substantial European funds to the Romanian economy, namely 5.2 billion euros (5.74 billion U.S. dollars),"Grindeanu said.
"At the same time, I personally monitor the weekly working meetings, the improvement of tax collection and the combat of tax evasion. These are levers that support the pace of the economic growth so that the evolution of the economy can be felt in Romanians' daily life," said Grindeanu.
According to him, exports peaked to a record high of 5.7 billion euros in March, more than 100,000 stable new jobs were created in the first four months of the year and the unemployment rate is "at a historical low after 1989".
The National Institute of Statistics (INS) announced early Tuesday that Romania's gross domestic product (GDP) registered a 5.7-percent growth year on year in the first quarter.
Official statistics showed that the growth was supported by higher domestic consumption and external demand, which boosted the industrial production. The retail trade turnover went up by 6.9 percent while the turnover in industry increased by 10.9 percent, compared to the first quarter of 2016.
For the entire year, the Romanian government forecasts an economic growth of 5.2 percent, while the international institutions and most of the financial analysts estimate a growth rate between 4 and 4.5 percent.
