ULAN BATOR, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 6.9 percent year on year in 2018, data released by the country's National Statistical Office showed Friday.

The figure was higher than the 6.4 percent forecast by the Asian Development Bank.

The Asian country's GDP totaled 18.1 trillion Mongolian tugriks (6.8 billion U.S. dollars) in 2018, an increase of 1.2 trillion Mongolian tugriks compared to the previous year, the data said.

Mongolia's GDP had undergone a sharp fall from 2011 to 2016 from 17.3 percent to 1.2 percent. And there has been a recovery since 2017.

Strong growth momentum was supported by steady commodity exports, a recovery in foreign direct investment (FDI), and improved business sentiment as well as the government's economic adjustment program, according to the World Bank.

The implementation of the three-year Extended Funding Facility of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has accelerated the growth of exports and the service sector, according to the statistical agency.

The IMF program was approved in 2017 to stabilize the economy and establish a basis for a more sustainable and inclusive growth.