ZAGREB, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Croatian Finance Minister Zdravko Maric welcomed on Wednesday the European Commission's revised forecast of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 but stressed that growth should be persistent.

The Commission has raised its GDP growth estimate for Croatia this year from 2.6 percent to 3.1 percent. Maric stressed that the corrected growth forecast for Croatia is among the three biggest in the European Union, along with those of Hungary and Romania.

"This is a positive thing for Croatia and for everyone who wants to invest in Croatia, but I think it is important that we continue on this course that we have set, in terms of everything we can do to facilitate economic growth in Croatia," the minister told reporters.

With its projected 3.1 percent growth rate, Croatia ranks ninth among all EU countries. Maric attributed the revision to the 2.9 percent annual growth registered in the first quarter of this year, noting that Croatia's key challenge is to increase productivity. Better results are expected in industrial production and some other activities, he said.

In response to the demand by restaurant owners to reduce the value added tax (VAT) from 25 percent to 13 percent, Maric said that his ministry would look for additional measures to improve the tax system and make it more competitive.