TEL AVIV, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Israel's economy grew an annualised 3.5 percent in the third quarter, slower than previously thought on a much smaller gain in exports, the Central Bureau of Statistics said on Sunday.
In a preliminary estimate last month, the bureau said gross domestic product grew an annualised 4.1 percent, faster than the average forecast of 2.5 percent in a Reuters poll.
Growth in the July-September period was led by a 7.6 percent jump in private spending, similar to its preliminary estimate.Exports, though, gained 1.8 percent, well below an initial estimate of an 18.5 percent jump. Investment in fixed assets rose 5.3 percent.
For all of 2017, the economy grew 3 percent, slower than a 4 percent spurt in 2016 mainly due to a drop in private spending to 3 percent after a 6.1 percent gain in 2016.
(Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Tova Cohen)
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