The fourth quarter growth is due to the recovery in consumer expenditure and a growing export surplus. The volume of GDP in the fourth quarter of 2005, corrected for working day patterns and seasonal effects, increased by 0.8 percent on the third quarter of 2005.
The fourth quarter of 2005 had two working days less than the fourth quarter of 2004. The quarter-on-quarter growth rate of 0.8 percent is in line with the previous twp quarters. The economic growth has clearly increased in the course of 2005.
Export growth less expansive: In 2005 the volume of the exports of goods and services was 5.9 percent higher than in 2004. The growth rate is lower than in 2004, when exports increased by 8.5 percent. The export increase in 2005 is mainly in re-exports, which reached a double-digit growth rate.
Re-exports are exports of goods produced elsewhere, for instance in China, Taiwan or the USA, which are distributed from the Netherlands after undergoing some processing. The increase of the exports of Dutch manufactured goods remains modest in comparison. Imports in 2005 increased by 5.1 percent, slightly below the growth rate for exports.
In the fourth quarter of 2005, exports were up by 3.6 percent on the year before. The growth rate of the imports was quite a way behind that of exports.
Slight increase in government consumption: The volume of government consumption in 2005 was up 0.5 percent on 2004. The increase took place in the second half of the year. This is partly due to extra expenditure to prepare for a change in systems. The real expenditure for care increased in the course of 2005.
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