Above: Dr Gladstone Hutchinson, center, said the mining industry had outperformed all sectors (FP)

By the Caribbean Journal staff

The Jamaican economy grew by 1.5 percent during the second quarter of this year, led by growth in mining, hospitality, agriculture and fishing, according to a report by the Planning Institute of Jamaica.

The numbers were delivered by the PIOJ at its quarterly review in New Kingston yesterday.

PIOJ Director-General Dr Gladstone Hutchinson said the services industry had performed well, with its first positive quarterly growth since 2007.

“The country has begun to realize benefits from green-shoots arising from fundamental reform of systems, procedures and processes aimed at mitigating and building economic and infrastructural resilience against shocks, vulnerabilities and other global developments,” Hutchinson said.

The mining sector led the way, with a 30.8 increase in the second quarter.

Earlier this year, the UN’s Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean released a prediction of a 1.5 percent rate of growth for Jamaica.

In an interview with Caribbean Journal, World Bank Economist Cristina Savescu said Jamaica’s recovery would be fueled by the mining and tourism sectors, both of which saw strong numbers in the PIOJ’s report.