MNN - Mother Nature Network

There’s a little bit of good news on the economic recovery front today. Revised Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures for the fourth quarter of 2011 show that the economy grew by 3 percent, better than the original 2.8 percent estimate. Although the increase looks relatively small, only 0.2 percent, the increase represents $7.5 billion.

 

Another positive sign with the revised figure is that the fourth quarter GDP was nearly double the 1.8 percent growth the nation realized in the third quarter of 2011. Last year started off on a rough note with a 0.4 percent GDP in the first quarter and a 1.3 percent growth rate in the second quarter.

 

Although today’s estimate is 3.0 percent there is a chance that the figure could be revised upward one more time. Each quarter’s GDP is figured three different times, based on updated data, and today’s report represents the second estimate for Q4 2011.

 

While it is nice to see a 3.0 percent growth rate, the nation is still trying to get back up to and beyond the 3.9 percent GDP rate from Q1 2010. The first quarter of 2010 was the highest GDP that the nation had seen since the first quarter of 2006 when the GDP was 5.1 percent. The 3.0 percent GDP is a big improvement over the -8.9 percent GDP from the fourth quarter of 2008 but the nation still has a long economic recovery road ahead of it.