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Third quarter U.S. GDP figures up by 2%

Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce

Growth in the the Real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was slight, modest or strong depending on the commentator. The growth in the Third Quarter was 2% up from 1.3% for the Second Quarter. 

Federal government spending, including in the area of defense was a contributing factor as was consumer spending on motor vehicles and parts. Residential housing investment is also on the rise with demand for more single-family homes.

The continuing drought in the Mid-West continued to play a significant role in the driving down farm inventory investment by $29 billion over the same reporting period.

Personal disposable income was slightly up and perhaps not surprisingly then, the figures for personal savings were down from the second quarter.

The BEA's technical note also says that they only had had two months of data available for some of their key sources to make the assessment; suggesting their may be a greater margin for error than in other releases.

The figures are certainly timely for a President seen by many to be on the backfoot.