Peru recession recovery on track with 4% growth in April

(Adds central bank projection in paragraph 6, background in 7-8)

LIMA, June 14 (Reuters) - Peru's economy grew 4% in April and possibly in May as well, the South American country's economy minister said on Friday, putting the country on track to recover from a recession amid a boost in public and private spending.

"In April we grew 4% and our projections show that in the month of May we are going to repeat with a statistic close to 4%," Economy Minister Jose Arista said in a speech to Congress, adding that the figures put Peru on track to grow 3.1% this year.

Peru, a top global copper producer, fell into recession last year due to the El Nino weather phenomenon, lower private investment and lingering effects from earlier social conflicts, returning to growth in the first quarter.

"What we want is to enhance this growth," said Arista. "That is why we propose measures that allow us to make this reactivation sustainable."

Peru's government has spent millions of dollars to boost the critical mining sector.

Private consumption and internal demand are also expected to rise in June and July, the central bank's chief economist, Adrian Armas, said on Friday during a presentation.

Peru's annual inflation has fallen to be well within the central bank's target range, registering 2% in May.

Still, the central bank held the country's benchmark interest rate at 5.75% on Thursday, citing persistent services inflation and bucking analysts' expectations of a 25-basis-point rate cut. 3 (Reporting by Marco Aquino; Additional reporting by Aida Pelaez Fernandez; Writing by Brendan O'Boyle; Editing by Aurora Ellis)