Words by

Catharine Fulton

The last quarter saw Iceland’s economy grow by 0.5%, as consumers got to spending and investors flocked to support the booming tourism industry, Bloomberg reports.
According to numbers released today by Statistics Iceland the country’s GDP increased by 1.6% in 2012. Domestic expenditure increased by 1.9% and household consumption increased by 2.7%. However, government final consumption decreased by 0.2%.
This growth is well below what had been forecasted, RÚV reports. Total GDP growth in 2012 falls short of the 2.9% growth the country experienced in 2011. Both the Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASÍ) and the IMF had predicted more than 2% growth in 2012.