'Economy to grow at over 8% in near, mid-term'

NEW DELHI: Expressing satisfaction on the UPA government's performance in the last 30 months, finance minister P Chidambaram said the Indian economy would continue to grow at more than 8 per cent in the next few years.

We can look back at this period with considerable satisfaction and given the state of our fundamentals we are optimistic of the outlook becoming brighter in the near and mid-term, he said at the economic editors conference here.

Chidambaram said the economy had witnessed an average growth of over 8 per cent during 2003-06 whereas inflation during the period had been moderate.

The Indian economy has continued to sustain its growth momentum and the first quarter growth in the current year was a robust 8.9 per cent, he said.

While growth during 1998-2004 averaged 5.9 per cent, the most recent three years have witnessed an average growth of over 8 per cent.