U.S. economy grew at a 2.8% pace in the second quarter, much more than expected (2024)

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U.S. economy grew at a 2.8% pace in the second quarter, much more than expected? ›

Real gross domestic product increased at a 2.8% annualized pace in the second quarter, above the 2.1% forecast. The personal consumption expenditures price index, a key measure for the Fed, rose 2.6% for the quarter, down from the 3.4% move in Q1. Core PCE prices were up 2.9%, down from 3.7%.

The Commerce Department had previously estimated that the nation's gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services — expanded at a 2.8 percent rate from April through June. The second-quarter growth marked a sharp acceleration from a sluggish 1.4 percent growth rate in the first three months of 2024.

The numbers: The U.S. economy grew at a 3% annual pace in the second quarter instead of the 2.8% rate originally estimated, revised government data released Thursday show. Economists polled by the Wall Street Journal were expecting second quarter GDP to be unrevised at 2.8% rate.

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.8% annualized rate in the second quarter—a faster rate than economists expected as consumer spending increased and businesses built up inventories, the Commerce Department said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released its first estimate for economic growth in the second quarter (Q2) of 2024. The report found that real U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.8 percent.

The United States upholds its status as the major global economy and richest country, steadfastly preserving its pinnacle position from 1960 to 2023. Its economy boasts remarkable diversity, propelled by important sectors, including services, manufacturing, finance, and technology.

According to the Department of Labor, roughly 8.7 million jobs (about 7%) were shed from February 2008 to February 2010, and real GDP contracted by 4.2% between Q4 2007 and Q2 2009, making the Great Recession the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. economy grew last quarter at a healthy 3% annual pace, fueled by strong consumer spending and business investment, the government said Thursday in an upgrade of its initial assessment.

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 3.0 percent in the second quarter of 2024 (table 1), according to the "second" estimate released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the first quarter, real GDP increased 1.4 percent.

US economic growth increased last quarter to a healthy 2.8% annual rate | AP News.

Is the US economy overheating? ›

WASHINGTON, July 9 (Reuters) - The U.S. is "no longer an overheated economy" with a job market that has cooled from its pandemic-era extremes and in many ways is back where it was before the health crisis, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in remarks to Congress that suggested the case for interest rate cuts is becoming ...

If the central bank raises interest rates too high or too soon, it could cause a hard landing. That is, the economy could dip into a recession. If the central bank raises interest rates slowly or in small increments, it is aiming for a soft landing.

In the Great Depression, GDP fell by 27% (the deepest after demobilization is the recession beginning in December 2007, during which GDP had fallen 5.1% by the second quarter of 2009) and the unemployment rate reached 24.9% (the highest since was the 10.8% rate reached during the 1981–1982 recession).

The newest GDP reading offers a snapshot of a strong economy that has slowed since 2023. The U.S. economy grew at a surprisingly robust 2.8 percent annualized rate in the second quarter, capping two years of solid expansion, despite some signs of softening.

BEA now estimates real GDP increased at an annual rate of 3.0% in Q2. This follows a reported real GDP increase of 1.4% in Q1. The “second” estimate is based on more complete source data than were available for the “advance” estimate issued last month. In the “advance” estimate, the increase in real GDP was 2.8%.

Headline US GDP growth rose by 2.8% (saar) in Q2 – twice the pace of the previous quarter. This was above our expectation for GDP growth of 2.0% (and consensus for the same), but in line with the Federal Reserve of Atlanta's GDP now tracker, which rose to 2.7% after June's retail sales rebound and revisions.

By 1983, inflation had eased, the economy had rebounded, and the United States began a sustained period of economic growth.

Old industries expanded and many new ones, including petroleum refining, steel manufacturing, and electrical power, emerged. Railroads expanded significantly, bringing even remote parts of the country into a national market economy. Industrial growth transformed American society.

The economy thrived after World War II in large part because America made it easier for people who had been previously shut out of economic opportunity — women, minority groups, immigrants — to enter the work force and climb the economic ladder, to make better use of their talents and potential.