GDP growth slows to 4.5% in Q2 as manufacturing, services disappoint

Private consumer spending grew by 5 per cent year-on-year, improving slightly from the previous quarter

The economy posted its weakest growth in more than six years as manufacturing activity contracted by 1 per cent in the September quarter. Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 4.5 per cent from a year ago, down from 5 per cent in the previous quarter, the data released by the National Statistical Office on Friday showed. 

Two successive quarters of below 5 per cent growth have cast a shadow on the economy’s performance in the fiscal year, analysts said. 

Worse, nominal GDP growth slipped to 6.1 per cent, the lowest in nearly two decades. Growth in government revenues and middle-class salaries