Hong Kong's economic growth gathered pace in the third quarter, fuelled by inbound tourism and private consumption.

According to the advance estimates released by the government on Tuesday, the economy expanded by 4.1 percent in the three months ending September compared with the same period last year.

That's stronger than the 1.5 percent expansion in the second quarter and the 2.9 percent growth in the January-March period.

It's the highest quarterly growth since the first quarter last year.

The government also said exports in the third quarter fell 8.6 percent year on year, an improvement from the 15.1 percent drop in the previous three months.

Chief Greater China Economist at ANZ Bank, Raymond Yeung, attributed the accelerated economic growth to inbound tourism.

"Local residents spend more money across the border rather than consume or in the retailers in Hong Kong... At the same time, we clearly see a lot more tourism inflow to Hong Kong. This will offset some of the outbound travel of the local residents," he said.

In a statement, a government spokesman said inbound tourism and private consumption will continue to underpin economic growth for the remainder of the year. But he also said a difficult external environment amid increasing geopolitical tensions would continue to weigh on exports and consumption sentiment.