TASHKENT, July 21 (Xinhua) -- Uzbekistan's economy grew by 8.5 percent in the first half of this year, driven by strong performance across key sectors, the Uzbek president's press service said Tuesday in a statement.
During the reporting period, the country's industrial output expanded by 8 percent year on year, while the services sector surged by 16.9 percent, said Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev at a recent review meeting. Construction and agriculture registered growth rates of 13.8 percent and 4.7 percent, respectively. Total investments reached 28 billion U.S. dollars, with foreign trade turnover amounting to 14.4 billion dollars.
International credit rating agencies Fitch and Moody's have both upgraded Uzbekistan's sovereign credit rating by one notch.
Uzbekistan aims to achieve an annual economic growth rate of 9 percent to 10 percent for the whole year. ■