Peru’s Economy Expanded Faster Than Expected in March

Peru’s economy posted better-than-expected growth in March, as construction and commerce shook off a two-week domestic natural gas shortage that hindered output.

Economic activity rose 3.2% from the same month a year earlier, faster than the 2.4% median estimate of nine economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The result was mainly driven by strong performance in construction and commerce, which grew 15.6% and 4.1%, respectively. Weighing on the result, fishing fell 12.5%, while mining and manufacturing declined by 4.6% and 0.5%, respectively.