Economy grew at 1.9% rate in Q2; jobless claims jump

WASHINGTON -- The economy grew at a muted 1.9% annual pace in the second quarter of the year, buoyed by federal tax stimulus checks and strong exports, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

The figures were an improvement on the 0.9% pace of growth in the first three months of the year.

Commerce Department's revised figures also showed the gross domestic product, broadest measure of goods and services produced in the USA, actually fell at a 0.2% annual rate the final three months of 2007, worst showing since the third quarter of 2001, when the economy was last in a recession. That had earlier been estimated as a 0.6% gain.

Economists expected the economy to grow at a 2.3% rate in the second quarter. But even though the figures were more sluggish than expected, they could turn out to be the high water mark for the year.

In a recent survey by USA TODAY, 54 top economists predicted economic growth will slow to a barely perceptible 0.2% annual rate by the fourth quarter.

Ian Shepherdson, Chief U.S. Economist at High Frequency Economics, called Thursday's numbers "soft and worse to come."

The impact of federal tax rebate stimulus checks will wane in coming weeks, as consumers continue to struggle with high gasoline and food prices, a depressed housing market and growing unemployment.

Business inventory investment was weaker than expected in second quarter. Personal income rose 7.4%, compared to a 3.7% rate in the earlier quarter. The Commerce Department said the improvement was primarily due to the tax rebate checks.

Likewise, consumer spending rose at a 1.5% rate in the second quarter, up from a 0.9% pace in January through March.

The economy was also buoyed by commercial real estate construction and state and local government spending. The housing market continued to be a drag on growth, as did the faltering domestic auto market.

Commercial real estate construction rose at a 14.4% rate in the quarter, while housing activity slid 15.6%. Stilll, housing was somewhat less a drag than in the past quraters — it declined at a 25.1% pace the first three months of the year.