Tourists help Cyprus economy keep growing

The economy of bailed-out eurozone member Cyprus grew for an eighth consecutive quarter, helped by record numbers of tourists flocking to the Mediterranean island, official figures showed Friday.

Gross domestic product (GDP) grew 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2016, maintaining the same pace of growth seen in the previous three-month period, Cyprus's statistical service said.

Compared with the same period of the previous year, GDP was up 2.9 percent.

Growth was seen in areas including manufacturing, construction, trade, hotels and restaurants.

Last year more than three million tourists visited Cyprus, seen as a regional safe haven at a time when other traditionally popular destinations in the eastern Mediterranean have been hit by political upheaval and security fears.

Cyprus has emerged from more than three years of economic slowdown after the government imposed harsh austerity measures in exchange for a 10-billion-euro rescue package from the European Union and International Monetary Fund.

The island's authorities have not yet officially published their estimate for growth for the whole of 2016, but Finance Minister Harris Georgiades expects it to be close to three percent, followed by a similar growth rate this year.