The US Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) released a report on Tuesday, December 23, showing that driven by strong consumer spending and a stabilizing trade policy, the US economy grew at its fastest pace in two years in the third quarter, with a growth rate of 4.3%.
This report by the BEA was originally scheduled to be released on October 30, but due to the federal government shutdown, it was repeatedly delayed. The data released on Tuesday showed that after seasonal and inflation adjustments, the annualized GDP growth rate for the third quarter (July to September) was 4.3%, surpassing the 3.8% growth rate in the second quarter.
The growth rate in the third quarter far exceeded expectations, with economists surveyed by Dow Jones expecting a growth rate of 3.2%.
The strong consumer spending drove the economic growth in the US in the third quarter. Following a 2.5% growth in the second quarter, consumer spending increased by 3.5% in the third quarter.
In addition to strong consumer spending, foreign trade contributed 1.59 percentage points to the overall GDP data growth in the third quarter, with exports increasing and imports continuing to decline. Moreover, increased government spending also bolstered the economy.
Data shows that since President Trump returned to the White House in January, the US economy has maintained an average annual growth rate of 2.5%, even despite an economic contraction in the first quarter (due to businesses importing goods in bulk to avoid new tariffs). This growth rate is slightly higher than the 2.4% average growth rate achieved by the Biden administration in 2024.
On Tuesday morning, President Trump posted on his social media platform “Truth Social,” saying, “The just-released US economic data is great, thanks to tariffs! And it will only get better in the future! No inflation, national security becoming stronger.” He also emphasized in the tweet that he will pray for the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling.