Agri surges forward but various problems hobble growth potential

摘要

The often neglected agriculture sector, a key growth driver of the economy, bucked unfavorable weather toward the latter part of 2004 and is seen to post a 5.11 per cent growth, exceeding its full-year target of 4.5 to 5 per cent. Had good weather prevailed all-year round, the projected growth was 5.8 per cent. Overall, the agriculture sector performed well throughout 2004. It started off with a robust output gain of 7.98 per cent in the first quarter and went back up to 7.94 per cent or a 6.82 per cent growth from January to September.