Militants attack two oil wells in northern Iraq, production unaffected

Militants attack two oil wells in northern Iraq, production unaffected

KIRKUK: Militants using explosives attacked two oil wells northwest of Kirkuk in northern Iraq on Saturday but no significant damage resulted and production was not affected, the Iraqi oil ministry said. The attack at the Bay Hassan oilfield "did not cause a fire or damage, affect production or stop oil pumping from the well," the ministry said in a statement. But the brisk expansion, heavily skewed by the plunge in activity a year earlier, is expected to moderate later this year as the government turns its attention to reining in financial risks in overheating parts of the economy. While the jump in the gross domestic product undershot the 19 percent forecast by economists in a Reuters poll, the official data showed it was the fastest growth since quarterly records began in 1992 and up from 6. 5 percent in the fourth quarter last year. "The upshot is that with the economy already above its pre-virus trend and policy support being withdrawn, China's post-COVID rebound is leveling off," said Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior china economist at Capital Economics. "We expect quarter-on-quarter growth to remain modest during the rest of this year as the recent boom in construction and exports unwinds, pulling activity