Romania’s economic expansion unexpectedly accelerated in the first quarter, probably because of a pick-up in exports and industry. Gross domestic product increased 4.3% from a year earlier, compared with 2.7% percent in the fourth quarter, according to a preliminary estimate, the Bucharest-based National Statistics Institute said Wednesday by e-mail. The median forecast of 10 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for 2.6% growth. GDP rose a seasonally adjusted 1.6% from the previous three months. Romania, whose economy relies mostly on car exports from Renault SA and Ford Motor Co. for growth, wants to boost consumption by cutting the value-added tax for food products next month.
