Go to original article

MEXICO CITY, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Mexico's economy grew at a 1.9 percent annual pace in September as a jump in agricultural output compensated for falls in oil and manufacturing, the national statistics agency said on Monday.

Economic output fell 0.98 percent in September compared with August on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to the statistics agency's global economic activity indicator.

Growth in Mexico is slowing sharply because a meltdown in the U.S. housing industry has blunted Americans' demand for Mexican manufacturing exports.

Much of the report for September was largely presaged in recent data on third-quarter economic growth, though it provided details on the downward trend in Mexican industry.

Industrial output, which includes both oil production and manufacturing, slipped 1.8 percent in September from a year earlier, the statistics agency said.

Agricultural production, which makes up a tiny slice of the total economy, surged 14.8 percent.

The service sector expanded 3.1 percent.