US GDP misses forecasts after growth of 2.8% in Q4

The US economy expanded by less than forecast at 2.8% in the fourth quarter of 2011, official figures have revealed.

The data, released from the US Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis, was below forecasts. Analysts had expected the first reading of US GDP to come in at 3%. The Bureau said the increase in real GDP in Q4 reflected positive contributions from private inventory investment, personal consumption, and exports. The figure follows a 1.8% expansion in Q3, revised down from an initial reading of 2%. The US economy is powering ahead of Europe having entered and exited recession well ahead of other nations at the end of the last decade. An accommodative Federal Reserve ...