U.S. GDP update
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Due to increased consumer spending, US economic growth is expected to accelerate in the second quarter, despite supply chain disruptions and Rise again In the case of Covid-19.
Economists surveyed by Refinitiv said that data from the US Department of Commerce are expected to show an 8.5% increase in GDP in the second quarter.
This will bring GDP back to pre-pandemic levels for the first time since the Covid-19 outbreak, and mark the fastest growth since 1983, excluding Jumped 33.4% In the third quarter of last year, the economy recovered from the first wave of blockades related to the pandemic.
Based on the metrics used by other large economies, GDP growth is expected to reach 2.1% compared to the previous quarter. The report is scheduled to be released at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time on Thursday.
The surge in vaccination from April to June boosted the US economy and released pent-up demand, while large-scale fiscal and monetary stimulus measures further fueled demand.
“In terms of economic activity, consumers are in a dominant position,” said Gregory Daco, an economist at the Oxford Economics Institute. Although growth is expected to have peaked, the US economy is still expected to expand moderately in the second half of the year.
Labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, and inflation have all been flagged as factors that may put pressure on economic activity, as well as the return of Covid-19 in certain areas of the country.
Biden administration officials expressed concern about the highly disseminated Delta variant and its impact on the economy. The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday that “the path of the economy continues to depend on the course of the virus”.
In recent weeks, federal and local officials have redoubled their efforts to increase vaccination rates for those who do not want to be vaccinated.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Mask guidance For those who were vaccinated this week, as well as some state and city governments, and Google and other employers, Has begun to require employees to be vaccinated or tested weekly in order to return to work.
Bank of America economists Stephen Juno and Anna Zhou said in a report: “In another wave of the new coronavirus, the most vulnerable part of the economy is services, especially leisure activities.” They warned that if Pandemic restrictions have resumed and service spending has fallen. As stimulus payments fade, the boom in commodity spending is unlikely to offset this decline.
