US Q3 GDP Grows at 3.7%

CNBC | October 29, 2004

[RWR8189]

The US economy probably grew at a rate of 3.7% in the third quarter of 2004.

Details to come...

[epluribus_2]

is that good?

[hawkaw]

Not bad for soaring oil prices and 4 hurricanes.

[IrishGOP]

Looks good to me!

[RWR8189]

This guy is spinning 3.7 growth as horrible?

4.3% was an incredibly inflated number.

[xuberalles]

It's very solid considering oil prices.

[gathersnomoss]

Yeah, but the economy grew on the backs of the poor, the starving chulrun, and my grandparents who are out on the street staring at my house as I speak.

[conservative in nyc]

Expect to hear that the 3.7% growth rate is disappointing because it fell way, way, way short of analysts' expectations of 4.3%.

Spin! Spin! Spin!

[Tijeras_Slim]

Close the shades!

[JohnHuang2]

Very bad news

For Lurch ;-)

[KevinDavis]

We're doomed!! Doomed I tell ya...

[RWR8189]

Line		2004    I	2004    II	2004    III
1	Gross domestic product	4.5	3.3	3.7
2	Personal consumption expenditures	4.1	1.6	4.6
3	Durable goods	2.2	-0.3	16.8
4	Nondurable goods	6.7	0.1	3.9
5	Services	3.3	2.7	2.7
6	Gross private domestic investment	12.3	19.0	5.2
7	Fixed investment	4.5	13.9	8.5
8	Nonresidential	4.2	12.5	11.7
9	Structures	-7.6	6.9	1.4
10	Equipment and software	8.0	14.2	14.9
11	Residential	5.0	16.5	3.1
12	Change in private inventories	---	---	---
13	Net exports of goods and services	---	---	---
14	Exports	7.3	7.3	5.1
15	Goods	9.1	6.0	7.8
16	Services	3.4	10.2	-0.8
17	Imports	10.6	12.6	7.7
18	Goods	12.7	13.0	7.5
19	Services	1.2	10.6	8.8
20	Government consumption expenditures and gross investment	2.5	2.2	1.4
21	Federal	7.1	2.7	4.6
22	National defense	10.6	1.9	9.3
23	Nondefense	0.2	4.4	-4.7
24	State and local	0.0	1.9	-0.5

[small voice in the wilderness]

They'll hobble away soon enough. Just don't feed them. That's why God made tree bark.

[gathersnomoss]

I have tried that. Closing the shades hasn't stopped them from staring and causing a scene if front of my neighbors. And my chulrun keep stealing their oatmeal.

[Tijeras_Slim]

Oatmeal... why are they complaining? All their peers are forced to live on catfood.

[xuberalles]

Personal spending went way up to 4.6%. That's huge and very telling. All about confidence in an economy.

[conservative in nyc]

Yup:

Economy Grows at a 3.7 Percent Pace in 3Q

1 minute ago

By JEANNINE AVERSA, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - The U.S. economy grew at a 3.7 percent annual rate in the third quarter — a pace that was slightly better than in the spring but not as strong as many analysts expected. The government report was the last broad snapshot of economic activity before Election Day.

The reading on gross domestic product (GDP (news - web sites)) for the July-to-September quarter — the last broad snapshot of economic activity before Election Day — followed a 3.3 percent growth rate in the prior quarter, the Commerce Department (news - web sites) reported Friday.

Analysts were predicting that the economy, which Federal Reserve (news - web sites) Chairman Alan Greenspan (news - web sites) had said hit a "soft patch" in the late spring, would gain traction and expand at a more brisk 4.3 percent rate in the third quarter.

GDP measures the value of all goods and services produced within the United States and is considered the broadest barometer of the economy's health.

Although the third quarter's performance fell short of analysts' expectations, it still marked the best growth seen since the first three months of this year.

Consumers — the lifeblood of the economy — snapped out of a funk in the third quarter and boosted spending at the fastest pace in a year. Businesses also increased spending on equipment and software, but they didn't invest as aggressively on building inventories — a factor that restrained economic growth in the third quarter. The bloated trade deficit also weighed on economic activity.

[snooker]

Yep, up from Q2 which was 3.3% Moving up again. Most economist say over 3% is not sustainable long term.

Better than France which was 0.8% in Q2 and expected to be about the same in Q3 -- :^)

[Leisler]

"...and my grandparents who are out on the street staring at my house as I speak."

I hate that. I had to hire street thugs to make'em go away. You don't know how much it hurt me to do that. Those kids were expensive.

[Brilliant]

Yeah, but jobs are being lost and even the new jobs pay less. So even though the GDP is growing like gangbusters, we're all worse off!