A container ship is loaded at Massport's Conley Terminal in the port of Boston in this file photo.(Photo: Stephan Savoia, AP)
The nation's economy grew at a 2.7% annual rate in the third quarter,
faster than originally estimated, because of greater strength in
exports and a surge in housing-related investment, the government
reported.
The report is revised from the government's initial
estimate of 2.0% growth, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported. In
the second quarter, GDP grew at a 1.3% rate.
The change in gross domestic product came in slightly lower than the 2.8% annual rate economists had predicted.
The boost from the initial estimate published last month suggests that
the housing recovery is taking root, and the European financial crisis
is having less impact on exports than initially feared. But consumers
are spending less than the government first estimated, as third-quarter
growth in consumer spending was revised down to 1.4% from an initial
estimate of 2%.
Housing investment climbed at an annual pace of
14.2%, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said. The gain was the
second-biggest quarterly jump in spending for new homes and remodeling
since before the housing bust.
Exports of goods and services grew
1.1% in the third quarter. The government previously estimated they fell
1.6%. In the second quarter, they grew 5.3%.
USA Today