MADRID, April 2 (Xinhua) - The Spanish government expects to surpass the forecasted 2.7 percent of economic growth this year, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy told local media on Monday.

Rajoy, who was in the city of Pontevedra (western Spain), said the Spanish government had predicted a 2.7 percent growth this year, but he pointed out that this figure could be surpassed.

"I think that if we do the right things, we can beat our own forecast and reach a higher growth," Rajoy told reporters, adding that the country could create more than 475,000 new jobs.

Rajoy has positively assessed the development of the Spanish economy, describing the five-year recession as "very hard" and highlighting the fact that Spain has led growth at a European level in some occasions.

According to Rajoy, Spain is going through a very important moment in which the surrounding countries grow and therefore the external sector is key. Rajoy is confident that following the line of the reforms of recent years, employment will increase, infrastructure can be developed and revenue will rise.

The government had previously predicted a 2.3 percent economic growth due to the uncertainty, but after the situation improved, the government revised up its forecast to 2.7 percent for 2018.