By IANS,
Washington: The US economy slowed to an annual growth rate of 1.3 percent during the second quarter of 2011, falling short of market expectations of around 1.7 percent, the commerce department said Friday.
It also sharply revised the January-March figures from a growth of 1.9 percent to just 0.4 percent, the weakest since the recession ended two years ago, Xinhua reported.
Consumer spending, a major engine of the world’s largest economy, was almost flat this spring. It increased only 0.1 percent, after 2.1 percent growth in the winter. Spending on manufactured goods, such as autos and appliances, fell 4.4 percent.
In the second quarter, real exports of goods and services increased 6 percent, compared with an increase of 7.9 percent in the first.
Due to austerity moves taken by state and local governments, consumption expenditures and gross investment decreased 3.4 percent, the same decrease pace as in the first quarter.
The price index for gross domestic purchases, which measures prices paid by US residents, rose 3.2 percent in the second quarter, compared with an increase of 4 percent in the first one.
The personal savings rate, saving as a percentage of disposable personal income, edged up to 5.1 percent in the second quarter from 4.9 percent in the first one.