Dive Brief:
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Gross domestic product grew at a 3.5% annual pace in the third quarter, no thanks to housing, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
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Growth in housing, business investment, and consumer spending were all down from the second quarter, the agency said.
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The “emerging” weakness in housing and consumer spending will “slip further” next quarter, Millan Mulraine, deputy chief economist at TD Securities in New York, told Reuters.
Dive Insight:
In large part due to a narrowing trade gap and strong defense spending, GDP has expanded by at least 3.5% in four of the past five quarters. The third-quarter gain was less than the second quarter’s, which was 4.6%.