Third-Quarter GDP Rate Is Higher Than Originally Reported

he U.S. economy grew at a 4.3% annual rate growth in the third quarter, higher than initially reported in late October, the Commerce Department said Wednesday.

The gross domestic product growth rate topped the earlier 3.8% reported by Commerce and exceeded economists’ forecasts of a 4% gain, Bloomberg reported.

The quarter was the tenth straight in which the GDP was greater than 3%, the longest such string since the 13 quarters that ended in the first quarter of 1986.

The GDP report also showed that corporate profits fell 3.4% in the quarter to $45.5 billion, compared with a 4.5% gain in the second quarter.