The U.S economy slowed in the third quarter of 2015 as real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at an annual rate of 2 percent, according to the "third" estimate released by the Commerce Department and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Real GDP is adjusted for inflation and represents "the value of the production of goods and services in the economy," according to the bureau. In the second quarter of 2015, GDP increased 3.9 percent.
The third estimate released Wednesday, which is based on more complete source data, showed a revision downwards from the 2.1 percent growth the agency announced in its second estimate.
Wall Street Journal economists predicted revision of 1.9 percent growth.
The third quarter real GDP of 2 percent, which includes performance from July, August, and September 2015, was much lower than last year’s third quarter real GDP estimate of 5 percent. And at that time, the White House noted that this was the fastest pace of growth in over a decade.
"The deceleration in real GDP in the third quarter primarily reflected a downturn in private inventory investment and decelerations in exports, in [personal consumption expenditures], in nonresidential fixed investment, and in state and local government spending that were partly offset by a deceleration in imports," states the agency.
BEA will release its advance GDP estimate for the fourth quarter of 2015 on Jan. 29.