Economic activity in the U.S. grew at an annualized rate of 1.9% in the third quarter. Economists polled by Dow Jones had expected the first look at U.S. economic growth in the third quarter to be 1.6%.
The Commerce Department on Wednesday said economic activity in the U.S. grew at an annualized rate of 1.9% in the third quarter, down slightly from the 2% pace in the second quarter. Economists polled by Dow Jones had expected the first look at U.S. economic growth in the third quarter to come in at a 1.6% rate.
The better-than-expected print was the result of continued consumer spending as well as government expenditures, the government said. Personal consumption expenditures, a gauge of spending by American households, rose at a 2.9% annualized rate while government spending grew at a 2% rate.
Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased during the third quarter. The most recent report on the U.S. trade deficit showed the imbalance at $54.9 billion at the end of August as imports outpace exports in the last full month of summer.
Companies hired 125,000 employees in October, according to ADP and Moody’s Analytics, 25,000 more than expected by economists polled by Dow Jones.
Medium-size businesses, those employing 50 to 499 people, led the pace, hiring 64,000 people. Large businesses added 44,000 jobs while small businesses saw jobs expansion of 17,000.
Payrolls within the services sector increased by 138,000 this month, led by a 41,000 increase in the education and health services space. Trade, transportation and utilities businesses added 32,000 payrolls.
However, payrolls in goods-production businesses decreased by 13,000 in October.
September payrolls were also revised down 93,000, a decrease of 42,000 from the ADP/Moody’s Analytics survey on Oct. 2.
MacDailyNews Take: Hopefully these signs of resilience outweigh any negative factors as a rising tide lifts all boats and consumer spending is a boon for companies like Apple!