MOSCOW, May 24 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's prime minister said Thursday GDP grew 7.7% in the first quarter of this year.
Mikhail Fradkov said people's real incomes increased 13% and investment in fixed capital rose by over 20% in the first quarter.
The Russian economics ministry said in early May that gross domestic product grew 7.9% year-on-year, compared to 5% growth in the first quarter of 2006. The ministry said that this year's GDP growth was largely due to heavier investment in the domestic economy, notably in the construction sector (a 22.7% increase year-on-year), retail trade (13.6% up on last year), and in processing industries (14.5% up).
In March, the ministry projected GDP growth at 6.2% in 2007. Last year, Russia's gross domestic product grew by an estimated 6.8% year-on-year.
