Third-Quarter GDP Rate of 2% Is Below Previous Estimate

he U.S. economy grew at a 2% annual rate in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said Wednesday, less than originally reported.

The rate was less than the 2.2% estimated by the department last month. (Click here for previous coverage.)

The gross domestic product — the value of all goods and services produced — growth rate for the quarter was less than the 2.6% rate in the second quarter.

onsumer spending, which accounts for about two-thirds of the GDP, expanded at a 2.8% annual rate in the quarter, compared with November’s 2.9% estimate and the second-quarter rate of 2.6%.

ome construction declined by the most since 1991, and consumer spending on medical services was less than previously reported, Commerce said in its final estimate for the quarter.