The Commerce
Department released on Thursday its advance estimate for the U.S. gross
domestic product (GDP) for the fourth quarter of 2024, which showed that the
U.S. economy grew less than anticipated
in the reviewed period.
According to
the estimate, the U.S. real GDP increased at an annual rate of 2.3 per cent
q-o-q in the final quarter of 2024, following an unrevised 3.1 per cent q-o-q gain
in the previous quarter. This marked the weakest economic growth since the first quarter of 2024 (+1.6 per
cent q-o-q).
Economists had forecast
the U.S. GDP to rise by 2.6 per cent q-o-q.
According to
the report, the advance in real GDP in the fourth quarter was mainly due to gains
in consumer spending and government spending that were partly offset by a decline
in investment. Meanwhile, imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation
of GDP, fell.
In 2024, the
U.S. economy grew 2.9 per cent y-o-y after a 2.9 per cent y-o-y increase in
2023, primarily reflecting advances in consumer spending, investment,
government spending, and exports. Imports dropped.