Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the fourth quarter of 2014 shows the economy is growing, but by how much?

What is the GDP Report? GDP is a measure of the total production and consumption of goods and services in the U.S., and covers components like consumer spending, business and residential investment, and price inflation. Combined with employment data, GDP gives an important measure of productivity growth.

What’s happened recently? The second reading of GDP for the fourth quarter of 2014 fell to 2.2 percent from the 2.6 percent recorded in the first reading. GDP had reached 5 percent in the third quarter of 2014.

What’s the bottom line? For all of 2014, GDP grew by just 2.4 percent, compared to 2.2 percent in 2013 and 2.3 percent in 2012. These numbers aren’t ones to write home about, as an annual rate of 3.5 percent is considered strong. GDP is the broadest measure of economic activity, and it will be important to see if 2015 can achieve higher growth.

I’ll continue to monitor economic reports closely. If you have any immediate questions, please call or email today.