Global| Jan 26 2018U.S. GDP Growth Slips, Held Back by Foreign Trade & Inventories
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
Economic growth eased slightly at yearend as GDP posted a 2.6% advance (AR) during Q4'17, following roughly 3.0% growth in each of the prior two quarters. Growth picked up, however, from Q4-to-Q4 to 2.5%, its quickest advance in three [...]
Economic growth eased slightly at yearend as GDP posted a 2.6% advance (AR) during Q4'17, following roughly 3.0% growth in each of the prior two quarters. Growth picked up, however, from Q4-to-Q4 to 2.5%, its quickest advance in three years. Expectations had been 3.0% growth last quarter in the Action Economics Forecast Survey.
Final demand growth accelerated last quarter to 3.2% (2.2% y/y) from 2.4% as inventories subtracted 0.7 percentage point from GDP's advance. Deterioration in the foreign trade deficit subtracted an even larger 1.1 percentage point. As a result, domestic final sales exhibited a strong 4.3% gain (2.8% y/y), its quickest advance since Q3'14.
The GDP figures can be found in Haver's USECON and USNA database. USNA contains virtually all of the Bureau of Economic Analysis' detail in the national accounts, including the integrated economic accounts and the recently added GDP data for U.S. Territories. The Action Economics consensus estimates can be found in AS1REPNA.
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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