KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 28: Malaysia's economy grew at a faster 5.9 per cent last year, ahead of government forecasts, the Department of Statistics said on Wednesday.

“Growth for the whole of 2006 advanced to 5.9 per cent compared to the annual growth rate of 5.2 per cent in 2005, surpassing the initial estimate of 5.8 per cent reported in the Malaysian Economic report 2006-07,” the department said in a statement.

It attributed the expansion to a growth in the services, manufacturing and agriculture sectors.

The services sector grew by 6.5 per cent in 2006 while manufacturing recorded a 7 per cent expansion, up from 5.1 per cent in 2005, the department said.

—AFP