US economy shows signs of further weakening
US gross domestic product grew at an annualised rate of 1.3 percent in the second quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday.
While second-quarter GDP came in significantly below most analysts' forecast of 1.6 percent, the most dramatic element in the report was a downward revision of the figures for the January-March period.
After initially estimating that GDP expanded by 1.9 percent in the first three months of the year, the Commerce Department now says first-quarter growth was a paltry 0.4 percent.
The disappointing GDP data added Friday to market worries about the continuing indecision in Washington over how to raise the debt limit ahead of an Aug 2 deadline.
The US unemployment rate edged up to 9.2 percent in June, with nearly 14 million people out of work.
Though the recession officially ended two years ago, economic growth remains too weak to recover the 8.4 million jobs lost during the slump.
