GDP 3Q growth rate 7.7 percent

Economic growth in the all three quarters of the year recorded a growth rate of over 7.5 percent according to statistics. GDP growth rate in the third quarter of 2014 recorded 7.7 percent according to quarterly national accounts released by the Department of Census and Statistics.

According to previous reports the growth rates in the first and second quarters were 7.6 and 7.8 percent.

According to the third quarter statistics the three mainstays of the economy, agriculture, industries and services sectors have shared the GDP by 10.1 percent, 31.2 percent and 58.7 percent in the third quarter of 2014.

Growth in the agriculture sector was low as 2 percent as a result of adverse weather.

Although the tea and vegetable sub sectors had positive growth, a sharp drop in the paddy sector (32.5%), rubber (32%) and inland fishery (24.8%) sectors has affected the overall growth of the agriculture sector.

The industry sector posted 12.6 percent growth. Mining and quarrying, manufacturing, electricity, gas and water and construction sub sectors have grown 14.2, 8.8, 8.4 and 21 percent.

The Services sector, the largest contributor of the GDP with 58.7 percent share, reported a 7.0 percent growth during the period with healthy growth in all sub sectors. GDP implicit price deflater which measures the price change in the economy with respect to the base year (2002=100), increased to 263.5 recording an inflation of 4.6 percent in the third quarter of 2014. The Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) (2006/2007=100) was 182.5, recording 3.5 percent inflation compared to the third quarter of 2013.