Mexican economy grows 0.8% in fourth quarter, preliminary data shows

MEXICO CITY, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Mexico's economy grew 0.8% in the fourth quarter from the previous three-month period, a preliminary estimate from national statistics agency INEGI showed on Friday, beating market expectations.

Latin America's second-largest economy rebounded from a contraction of 0.3% the previous quarter and exceeded forecasts from economists polled by Reuters that saw a 0.6% increase.

The economic expansion was mainly driven by secondary and tertiary activities, respectively covering manufacturing and services, that both grew 0.9% on a sequential basis.

Those increases offset the decline in the primary activities, such as farming, fishing and mining, that were down 2.7%.

Compared with the same period a year earlier, growth in the fourth quarter hit 1.6%, above the 1.3% expansion expected by economists.