US economy expands by 3.3% in Q2, exceeding estimates

By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The US economy expanded by 3.3% quarter-on-quarter in the second quarter of the year, exceeding the preliminary estimate of 3%.

The increase in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected a decrease in imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, and an increase in consumer spending, the bureau said.

"These movements were partly offset by decreases in investment and exports," it noted.

The 0.3 percentage point rise in the GDP growth primarily reflected upward revisions to investment and consumer spending that were partly offset by a downward revision to government spending and an upward revision to imports.

Real final sales to private domestic purchasers, the sum of consumer spending and gross private fixed investment, increased 1.9% in the second quarter, a 0.7 percentage-point increase from the estimates.

It also said that the price index for gross domestic purchases increased 1.8% in the second quarter, down 0.1 percentage point from the estimates.

"The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index increased 2.0%, revised down 0.1 percentage point from the previous estimate. Excluding food and energy prices, the PCE price index increased 2.5%, the same as previously estimated," the bureau noted.