por admin » Jue Oct 27, 2011 7:45 am
Es importante resaltar que el crecimiento de la economia fue impulsado fuertemente por el consumo y la inversion por parte de los negocios.
El consumo subio 2.4% en el tercer trimestre, habia subido 0.7% en el segundo. Gran diferencia. Los negocios aumentaron su inversion en 16.3% (equipo y software).
Las ventas retail finales subieron un saludable 3.6% comparado con 1.6% en el segundo trimestre.
Tambien los precios bajaron.
ECONOMYOCTOBER 27, 2011, 8:52 A.M. ET.U.S.
Economic Growth Accelerates
By JEFFREY SPARSHOTT And JEFF BATER
U.S. economic growth accelerated this summer as consumers and businesses boosted spending, allaying at least for now concerns of a slide back toward recession.
Separately, new claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week yet remained elevated, showing that the labor market is still struggling to find its footing.
Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of all the goods and services produced in an economy, grew at an inflation-adjusted annual rate of 2.5% from July through September, the strongest performance in a year.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires expected GDP to rise 2.7%.
The economy grew a paltry 0.4% in the first quarter and 1.3% in the second quarter of the year, sparking concerns of a new downturn.
But in the third quarter, consumer spent more on durables -- goods like cars and refrigerators -- and services, while business investment surged.
The first estimate of the economy's benchmark indicator showed third-quarter personal consumption expenditures up 2.4%, compared with only 0.7% in the preceding period.
"Despite negative economic headlines, we're not seeing evidence of a slowdown in demand," JetBlue Airways Corp. interim Chief Financial Officer Mark Powers said Wednesday after the company reported third-quarter earnings.
Businesses also are investing, especially in equipment and software. Nonresidential fixed investment jumped 16.3% after a 10.3% rise in the second quarter.
Federal government spending and rising exports also helped the economy, while inventory investment and falling state and local government spending dragged on growth.
Real final sales -- GDP less changes in private inventories -- increased 3.6%, compared with a 1.6% rise in the second quarter.
The pace of growth rose as businesses rebounded from natural disasters in Japan and despite uncertainty over the United States' fiscal outlook and a rolling financial crisis in Europe.
The outlook for Europe brightened Thursday -- leaders there said they secured a deal to reduce Greece's debt after they labored overnight to find agreement on what they had billed as a blockbuster package to stem the Continent's debt problems.
Looking ahead, some economists are concerned that the recovery will again slow as the real estate market remains moribund, unemployment high, wages stagnant and consumer confidence low more than two years after the recession formally ended.
"Even if the economy doesn't contract, growth should remain unusually lackluster next year," Paul Ashworth, chief U.S. economist at Capital Economics, said ahead of the GDP release.
Federal Reserve officials meet Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss whether there is anything else they can or should do to spur growth.
At their last meeting, in September, they voted to shift the Fed's portfolio of securities so it will hold more long-term U.S. Treasury bonds and mortgage debt than previously planned. They hope the move will lower long-term interest rates, boosting investment and spending.
Some Fed officials, though, are worried the central bank will egg on inflation.
The core inflation rate--which excludes volatile moves in food and energy prices and is closely watched by the Fed--increased 2.1% from the previous quarter, the Commerce Department said. That followed a 2.3% gain in the second quarter.
The overall price index for personal consumption expenditures increased by 2.4% in the third quarter, compared with a 3.3% rise over the previous three months.
Gross domestic purchase prices were up 2.0%, while the chain-weighted GDP price index increased by 2.5%.
Jobless Claims Flat
Initial jobless claims dropped by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 402,000 the week ended Oct. 22, the Labor Department said Thursday. In the prior week, jobless claims had decreased by 7,000 to 404,000, based on revised figures.
The four-week moving average of new claims, a more reliable indicator of the labor market's performance because it smoothes out volatile weekly figures, edged up by 1,750 to 405,500 in the latest week.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast claims would fall by 3,000 to 400,000. Most economists believe jobless claims must fall below 400,000 for the economy to add more jobs than it is shedding. The figures released Thursday are consistent with the view that employers are reluctant to make big hires--or significant layoffs--as the economy remains stuck in a slow growth phase.
A poll of 70 corporate economists released last week showed that only 29% expect employment will increase in the next six months--the lowest number in the quarterly National Association for Business Economics survey since January 2010.
Last month the unemployment rate was stuck at 9.1%, even though U.S. employers did add jobs in September.
President Barack Obama has proposed a $447 billion package of spending initiatives and tax cuts aimed at boosting employment. That jobs bill, however, has meet resistance from Republicans in Congress who oppose new spending.
After Obama's plan was rejected as whole, Democrats have taken to trying to pass it on a piecemeal basis. Next week, the Senate is expected to take up a proposal to increase infrastructure spending for wide range of projects including bridge repairs and expanding high-speed Internet access.
Thursday's report showed the number of continuing unemployment benefits--those drawn by workers for more than a week--totaled 3,645,000 in the week ended Oct. 15. Continuing claims are reported with a one-week lag.
That number fell by 96,000 from the prior week, the lowest point since September 2008. It's not possible to know if that decrease is due to workers finding jobs or running out of benefits, a Labor official said.
The unemployment rate for workers with unemployment insurance was 2.9% for the week ending Oct. 15, down 0.1% from the week before, the new data showed.
The state-by-state breakdown in initial jobless claims, which is also released with a lag, showed the biggest rise the week ended Oct. 15 was in Wisconsin, where claims rose by 1,193. Puerto Rico also saw claims grow significantly, jumping by 1,286.
The largest decline in claims was in California, down 8,942 as there were fewer layoffs in the service industry, the state reported.