Final domestic demand added 0.5 percentage points to the GDP growth in the third quarter; gross fixed capital formation (0.2 percentage points). Also, net foreign demand contributed positively to the GDP growth (0.2 percentage points), while changes in inventories subtracted 0.3 percentage points.
Within domestic demand, household consumption grew by 0.4 percent in the three months to September, rebounding from a 0.2 percent contraction in the second quarter. It was the steepest increase in private spending in a year as consumption of goods bounced back significantly (0.4 percent vs -0.4 percent in Q2) and that of services accelerated slightly (0.4 percent vs 0.1 percent). In particular, expenditures on energy recovered slightly (0.1 percent vs -2.3 percent) and consumption of food products stablised after two quarters of decline (0.2 percent vs -1.3 percent). In services, transport expenses bounced back markedly (3.4 percent after -2.9 percent) after a significant decline in Q2 due to strikes in rail transport. In addition, fixed investment increased by 0.9 percent, the same as in the previous quarter, with corporate investment (1.6 percent vs 1.3 percent), notably investment in IT activities and information services, as well as in automotive. Also, government expenditure went up 0.2 percent, following a 0.3 percent rise in the prior quarter.
Exports surged 0.4 percent (vs -0.1 percent in Q2), while imports went down 0.3 percent (vs 0.5 percent in Q2).
Year-on-year, the economy expanded 1.4 percent in the third quarter, easing from a downwardly revised 1.6 percent growth in the previous three-month period and below a preliminary estimate of 1.5 percent.