The US economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter as resilient consumer spending and AI-driven business investment more than offset the impact of higher oil prices stemming from the conflict in the Middle East.
Gross domestic product increased at a 3.4 per cent annualised rate last quarter, the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Economic Analysis said in its advance estimate of third-quarter GDP on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP advancing at a 3.2 per cent pace.
Estimates ranged from a 1 per cent growth rate to a 4.2 per cent pace.