The Commerce Department released Thursday its advance estimate for
the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) for the fourth quarter of 2022, which revealed
that the U.S. economy grew
more than forecast in the reviewed period.
According to the estimate, the U.S. real GDP increased at an annual rate
of 2.9 percent q-o-q last quarter, following an unrevised 3.2 percent q-o-q advance
in the third quarter. This marked the first increase in the U.S. economy in
three quarters. since the second quarter of 2020.
Economists had expected GDP to grow 2.6 percent q-o-q.
According to the report, the advance in real GDP in the fourth quarter was
due to increases in private inventory investment, consumer spending, federal
government spending, state and local government spending, and nonresidential
fixed investment, which, however, were partly offset by declines in residential
fixed investment and exports. Meanwhile, imports, which are a subtraction in
the calculation of GDP, went down.