US Economic Growth Slows to 1.6 Percent in 1st Quarter, Lowest Since 2022

Consumer and government spending slows.

Sales advertisement at a shop in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City shopping mall in Arlington, Va., on Jan 3, 2024. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The U.S. economy showed signs of slowing in the first quarter as inflation pressures and higher borrowing costs weighed on the country to kick off 2024.

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), the U.S. economy expanded by 1.6 percent in the first three months of the year, down from 3.4 percent in the fourth quarter. The reading fell short of the consensus estimate of 2.5 percent.