4th Quarter GDP

4th quarter GDP was reported this morning, coming in at 1%.This number was higher than the expectation of 0.7%, but it is still not a very impressive number for an economy that is projected to grow (according to the white house) at 2.5 – 3% for the full year. A majority of the increase in GDP was due to an increase in inventories on the balance sheet. That means consumers essentially consumed less goods in the 4th quarter That is not a great sign for retail. Whether or not this number is an indication that the economy is slowing remains to be seen. This continues a lackluster streak for the current administration of sub 3% annual growth.