The economy slowed late last year but still turned in a solid performance as another burst of consumer spending was offset by a drop in business investment and stockpiling.
The nation’s gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in the U.S., expanded at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 2.3% in the October-to-December period, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. That’s down from a 3.1% increase in the third quarter and an average 2.6% pace in the first nine months of the year.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had forecast a 2.6% increase in output.