The economic calendar last week was packed, and most data pointed toward an economy that is picking up speed. Although the data released largely headed in the right direction, the speed at which the economy is growing remains unimpressive. GDP in the second quarter expanded at a 1.7 percent annualized rate, which was notably stronger than the 1.0 pace the market was expecting. However, revisions to prior data (last week’s release included benchmark revisions that occur about every five years) showed that the economy grew at a slower pace in the first quarter, expanding at a 1.1 percent annualized rate versus 1.8 percent as last reported. Taken together, GDP grew at an annualized rate of 1.4 percent in the first half of the year, which will make it tough to meet to the Fed’s current projections of 2.3-2.6 percent year-over-year growth in the fourth quarter.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Aug 2013 17:46:34 +0000