ROME, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- Italy's outlook on growth would remain positive in the short term, the head of the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT) said here on Tuesday.
"The country's growth perspective for the next months appears favorable," ISTAT president Giorgio Alleva told a parliamentary budget committee during a hearing.
Signals of improvement for the euro-zone's third largest economy were especially linked to a growing demand for investments, according to the top official.
Earlier on Tuesday, ISTAT also released its report on national accounts in the second quarter of the year. Italy's gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.3 percent over the first quarter of 2017 -- down from 0.4 percent previously reported -- and by 1.5 percent compared to the same period of 2016, according to data.
On the contrary, growth in the first quarter of this year was revised up to 0.5 percent from a previous 0.4 percent. The "acquired growth" so far in 2017 was 1.2 percent, ISTAT stated.
Gross fixed capital formation and final consumption expenditure in Q2 respectively grew by 0.9 percent and by 0.2 percent against the first quarter, and by 3.7 percent and 1.3 percent over the same period of 2016.
The gross disposable income of Italian households grew by 0.2 percent on a quarterly basis, and by 0.9 percent compared to Q2 last year.
The families' purchasing power remained steady compared to the previous quarter, but dropped by 0.3 percent on an annual basis, according to ISTAT.
Their propensity to save was 7.5 percent, down by 0.2 percent over the first quarter, and by 1.5 percent against the same period of 2016.
Such decline was due to the "household final consumption expenditure growing more than the disposable income (by 0.4 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively)," the agency wrote.
Finally, Italy's budget deficit was 2.4 percent of GDP in the first half of this year compared to 2.6 percent registered in the first six months of 2016. Considering the second quarter only, the deficit-to-GDP ratio was 0.5 percent against 0.4 percent in the same period of last year.
In its economic and financial blueprint, the Italian government put the deficit target at 2.1 percent this year, down from 2.5 percent in 2016.
