New Delhi, Aug 30 (IANS): Industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Saturday welcomed Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's address on the occasion of the government completing 100 days in office.

"Investor and industry sentiments are already up and it is reflected in the performance of the markets and the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) figures for first quarter," said Chandrajit Banerjee, director general, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

"We believe that the worst is over for the economy and a recovery is underway. Industry results and government data, both corroborate that belief."

Jaitley said Saturday that the economy is expected to grow much faster in the coming quarters than the growth of 5.7 percent in GDP achieved during the first quarter of the current fiscal.

"Growth rate of 5.7 percent in first quarter is encouraging. The recent GDP figures show that the economy is on a recovery path. We expect the economy to grow much faster in the coming quarters," Jaitley said here.

The Indian economy expanded by 5.7 percent during the first quarter of the current financial year to log the highest growth yet in nine quarters or over two years.

"Various initiatives taken by the government to revive industrial growth, attract investment in infrastructure, curb inflation, simplify tax laws including the earliest implementation of GST, allow higher FDI," have helped, Banerjee added.