US GDP revised upwards to 5.9pc

By James Quinn, US Business Editor Published: 7:00PM GMT twenty-six February 2010

The rate of US mercantile expansion rose in annoy of a lower-than-expected enlarge in consumer spending

The world"s largest economy available a 5.9pc enlarge in annualised sum made at home product (GDP) according to the ultimate rider from the Commerce Department, that had creatively put expansion in the fourth entertain of last year at 5.7pc.

The higher expansion rate the fastest given the third entertain of 2003 - was driven by increases in production and in collateral output by businesses, and in annoy of a lower-than-expected enlarge in consumer spending, rising 1.7pc opposite 2.8pc in the third quarter.

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However, scarcely two-thirds of the expansion in GDP came from changes in commercial operation inventories, and not by tangible sales growth, as companies simply slowed the rate at that they had been shortening batch levels.

"Inventories will go on to yield a clever progress to GDP expansion in the initial half of this year, as bonds begin to grow rather than only cringe at a slower pace," pronounced economist Paul Ashworth at Capital Economics. "But that progress will blur fast in the second half. Once inventories are behind at normal levels, that"s it."

The problems in the US housing marketplace could additionally action as a draw towards on postulated growth, with the National Association of Realtors stating that residence sales fell 7.2pc in January, descending to the lowest annual rate of sales given last summer.