Mexican economic growth picked up in the second quarter as the services sector expanded at its fastest pace in a year, offsetting flat industrial output on wobbling exports and sinking oil production. The economy expanded by 0.5 percent in the April-June period compared with the second quarter, when growth reached 0.4 percent, the national statistics agency said on Thursday. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast 0.4 percent growth.
Services picked up to 0.9 percent growth from 0.7 percent in the prior quarter, its fastest pace since the second quarter of 2014. Industrial output, which includes factory and crude oil production, was flat compared with the previous quarter.