U.S. First Quarter GDP Growth Slows to 2.3%
Published Apr 27, 2018 08:31AM ET
U.S. GDP grows 2.3% vs. 2.1% forecast
Investing.com - The U.S. economy slowed its expansion in the first quarter, according to preliminary data released on Friday.
Gross domestic product grew by 2.3%, the Commerce Department said in its advanced estimate.
That topped economists’ forecasts for growth of 2.0% and was down from 2.9% in the previous quarter.
The slowdown was largely based on the drop in real consumer spending to 1.1% in the first quarter, from the prior 4.0%. That reading also mixed expectations for a 1.2% gain.
The GDP price index for its part rose 2.0% in the first quarter, compared to the prior reading of a 2.3% increase and forecasts for a 2.2% gain.
Despite the slowdown, it was still the best start to a year since 2015 and the U.S. economy is currently in its second longest economic expansion since World War II.
Analysts believe that the first quarter data is unlikely to have much of an impact on Federal Reserve policymakers’ plans for gradual tightening given the expected boost over the coming months from the Trump administration tax cuts.
According to Investing.com’s Fed Rate Monitor Tool, markets currently expect the next interest rate hike in June and are pricing in the possibility of an additional increase as early as September.
First quarter GDP will be revised on May 30 and June 28.
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Written By: Investing.com
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