HK's GDP growth in Q3 stands at 1.3 pct

HONGKONG, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Hong Kong economy grew modestly in the third quarter of 2012, by 1.3 percent over a year earlier, similar to the 1.2 percent pace in the second quarter, according to the Third Quarter Economic Report 2012 released by Hong Kong Government Friday.

On a seasonally adjusted quarter-to-quarter comparison, the economy resumed growth at 0.6 percent in the third quarter, after a marginal decline of 0.1 percent in the preceding quarter.

External demand remained subdued in the face of the recession-ridden eurozone, slow-growing U.S. economy, and the ensuing set-back in Asian production and trade flows. Yet helped partly by a low base of comparison a year earlier, total exports of goods still had a moderate year-on-year growth at 4 percent in real terms in the third quarter, though with widespread weaknesses still evident across the EU, the U.S. and many major Asian markets. Exports of services slowed visibly to only a meager 0.1 percent year-on-year growth over the same period.

Domestically, thanks to largely sanguine job and income conditions, private consumption expenditure grew steadily further by 2.8 percent in real terms in the third quarter over a year earlier. Meanwhile, investment spending picked up to a strong 8.7 percent growth, on the back of robust private machinery and equipment acquisition, intensive large-scale infrastructure works, as well as a further surge in private sector building activity.