The Greek economy grew at a rate of 3.6 percent in the first quarter of 2008, compared with the corresponding period last year, the National Statistics Service said on Thursday.

   The national statistics service, in a report, attributed the growth of the Gross Domestic Product to an 1.6 percent increase in final demand of the economy, despite an 1.0 percent decline in investments over the same period.

   NSS said exports grew 0.9 pct in the January-March period, compared with the same period last year, contributing 0.2 percentage points to the growth of final demand, while imports fell 4.6 pct. Spending on final consumption rose 2.5 percent, contributing 1.6 percentage points to the growth of final demand of the economy.

   Caption: People walking in a main shopping street in Athens