U.S. GDP Grows to 5.2% in Q3, Higher Than Original Estimates

Posted November 30, 2023

Gross domestic product (GDP) increased by 5.2 percent in the third quarter of 2023, according to a second estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Initially estimates held the GDP at 4.9 percent.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported in October that the estimated real gross domestic product, a measurement of all goods and services produced in the U.S. economy, was 4.9 percent for the third quarter. That number has seen a 0.3 percentage point increase, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported Wednesday.

The update primarily reflected upward revisions to nonresidential fixed investment and government spending.

Nonresidential fixed investment topped at 1.3 percent, a downward trajectory compared to previous quarters. While government spending reached 5.5 percent, revised from the initial estimate of 4.6 percent.

Consumer spending showed a downward revision compared to October’s original readings.

Consumer spending for the third quarter is now just 3.6 percent, compared with 4 percent in the initial estimate.

The new readings spell a more positive outlook for the third quarter, however, economist experts are not yet convinced this trajectory will be sustainable.

“Evidence of economic strength over the summer could mislead some to assume the economy is on a strong trajectory — it is not,” chief economist Gregory Daco of EY Parthenon told Market Watch on Wednesday.

View the full Bureau of Economic Analysis GDP report, here.