U.S. Economic Growth Slows In Q1, But Annual Pace Quickens

Fri, 04/27/2012 - 14:53 EDT - Seeking Alpha

James Picerno

By James Picerno: U.S. economic growth slowed in the first quarter, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reports. Q1 GDP grew at an annual 2.2% rate in the first three months of 2012, considerably slower than the 3.0% increase in last year’s fourth quarter. The downshift will surely feed worries that the economy is struggling, particularly after the sharp drop in March durable goods orders and the modest upturn in recent weeks in new jobless claims. But today's GDP report isn’t a smoking gun for arguing that a recession is imminent. Measured on a year-over-year basis, GDP growth accelerated, which suggests that the economy still has enough forward momentum to steer clear of a new downturn for the immediate future. Let's review the numbers by starting with the traditional measure of GDP: real (inflation-adjusted) quarterly changes. As the chart below shows, there's been an obvious slowing of growth. As today's government release explains, "theComplete Story »

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U.S. Economic Growth Slows In Q1, But Annual Pace Quickens

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