Economy grows by 2,9 percent

The Dutch economy saw robust growth in the first quarter of 2006. The gross domestic product (GDP) was up by 2.9 percent on the year before. It is the highest growth rate in over five years. Exports contributed substantially again to the economic recovery in the first quarter of 2006. The increase in household consumption was another major impulse.

The volume of GDP in the first quarter of 2006, corrected for calendar and seasonal effects, was 0.2 percent higher than in the fourth quarter of 2005. The first quarter of 2006 had two working days more than the first quarter of 2005. The 0.2 percent quarter-on-quarter growth is clearly less than in the previous three quarters.

Households spent 2.9 percent more in the first quarter of 2006 than in 2005. This figure is corrected for price changes and changes in the health care system. It is the highest growth rate in years. People spent more on durable consumer goods in particular. The volume of government consumption in the first quarter of 2006 was up by 0.4 percent in the same quarter of 2005.

The volume of the exports of goods and services was up by 7.1 percent in the first quarter on the year before. The export rose slightly more than the 5.9 percent average of 2005. The growth is mainly due to re-exports. Dutch manufactured exports also grew substantially though. The import growth rate (7.2 percent) was almost identical to that of the exports. The import growth was not just due to the re-exports but also to the recovery of domestic expenditure and production. In the first quarter of 2006 investments were up by 3.4 percent on the same quarter of 2005. The recovery of investments is supported more widely now.

Disposable for final expenditure and final expenditure (volume)