Economics
U.S. Growth Cools to 2.3% While Compensation Costs Accelerate
- Consumption weakest since 2013; business spending still solid
- Private wage measure has fastest annual increase since 2008
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U.S. economic growth cooled last quarter as consumers pulled back following outsize spending in the prior period, though solid business investment cushioned some of the weakness and employee-compensation costs accelerated amid a tight job market.
Gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in the nation, rose at a 2.3 percent annualized rate after climbing 2.9 percent in the prior quarter, the Commerce Department reported Friday. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg called for a 2 percent gain. A separate Labor Department report showed that employment costs rose more than expected in the first quarter and a measure of private wages had the biggest annual gain since 2008.