U.S. economic activity surged at a record clip for the July- September period, as an initial easing of virus-related lockdowns allowed business activity to return after a historic slump.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis released its advance print on third-quarter gross domestic product Thursday morning, and the main metrics compiled by Bloomberg are:
- Q3 GDP, annualized quarter-over-quarter: 33.1 percent vs. 32.0 percent expected, -31.4 percent in the second quarter
- Q3 Personal Consumption: 40.7 percent vs. 38.9 percent expected, -33.2 percent in the second quarter
- Q3 GDP Price Index: 3.6 percent vs. 2.9 percent expected, -1.8 percent in the second quarter
- Q3 Core Personal Consumption Expenditures, quarter-over-quarter: 3.5 percent vs. 4.0 percent expected, -0.8 percent in the second quarter
Prior to the pandemic period, the largest-ever quarterly rise in GDP had been a 16.7 percent annualized increase in 1950. The rise in third quarter 2020 economic activity was nearly twice that, with the record jump following the record 31.4 percent slide earlier this year.
The advance came primarily from strength in personal consumption, which comprises about two-thirds of domestic economic activity. Personal consumption rose a better-than-expected 40.7 percent in the third quarter after dropping 33.2 percent in the second.
Click here to read Emily McCormick’s full report on Yahoo Finance.
