Page 7 - ARUBA TODAY 1 MAART, 2017

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U.S. NEWS Wednesday 1 March 2017

US Financial Front:

America’s economy grew at weak 1.9% rate in 4th quarter

productivity gains. economist at Capital Eco- GDP growth of 2.5 percent
At the moment, many nomics, said that even with in the first quarter.
economists are forecast- the fourth quarter slow- While the overall GDP fig-
ing growth for this year of down, the second half of ure in the fourth quarter
between 2 percent and 2.5 2016 was much better than was unchanged, the report
percent. the first half, with encourag- Tuesday did show revisions
Some say growth could hit ing signs from business and to various components.
3 percent in the second consumer surveys. Consumer spending, which
half of the year if elements “The marked improvement accounts for 70 percent of
of Trump’s economic pro- in the survey evidence re- economic activity, was re-
gram such as the middle- cently suggests that growth vised to show solid growth
class tax cuts win approval will continue at a decent at a 3 percent rate, up
in Congress by this summer. pace in the first half of this from an initial estimate of
Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. year,” he said, predicting 2.5 percent growth.q

A worker looks out from the SLS Lux in the Brickell neighbor-
hood of Miami. The SLS Lux is a 57-story residential and hotel
property developed by the Related Group, and is scheduled to
open in 2017. The U.S. economy grew at an anemic 1.9% rate in
the fourth quarter, unchanged from an initial estimate, although
consumers performed better than first thought, according to in-
formation released Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017, by the Commerce
Department.
(AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
MARTIN CRUTSINGER has averaged 2.1 percent,
AP Economics Writer the worst performance for
WASHINGTON (AP) — The any recovery in the post-
U.S. economy grew at an World War II period.
anemic 1.9 percent rate President Donald Trump
in the fourth quarter, un- vowed during the cam-
changed from an initial es- paign to double economic
timate, although consum- growth to 4 percent or bet-
ers performed better than ter. He said his economic
first thought. program of tax cuts, de-
The increase in the gross regulation and increased
domestic product, the spending in such areas as
broadest measure of eco- the military and infrastruc-
nomic health, represented ture would boost the econ-
a significant slowdown omy back to growth rates
from 3.5 percent growth not seen on a sustained
recorded in the third quar- basis in decades.
ter, the Commerce Depart- However, Trump’s Treasury
ment reported Tuesday. Secretary Steven Mnuchin
The fourth quarter figure has cited a lower projec-
was unchanged from the tion.
first estimate a month ago, He has said he believes
although some of the com- the Trump program would
ponents were revised. The achieve growth 3 percent
government found that or better and that the im-
consumer spending grew provements would likely
at a faster rate, but spend- not be felt until 2018, after
ing by state and local gov- the Trump program had
ernments and business- been enacted.
es equipment purchases Even a 3 percent growth
were weaker. goal is viewed by many
Growth for 2016 overall was economists as overly op-
just 1.6 percent, the poor- timistic, given the head-
est showing in five years. winds the economy faces
Since the recession ended including an aging work-
in mid-2009, annual growth force and disappointing