White House press secretary Jen Psaki acknowledged to reporters that Thursday’s GDP report is expected to show slowed economic growth in the first quarter of 2022 but claimed that the shift is an indication of just how much the economy grew to round out 2021.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis will publish its GDP report on Thursday morning, and most economic analysts have downgraded their projections to around 1% growth.
Psaki faced questions during Monday’s White House briefing about the GDP report and told reporters that the White House looks “closely” at economic data before claiming that the “current” unemployment rate and record number of jobs added in 2021 are “a result of the actions of the president.”
Still, she conceded that White House advisers are expecting Thursday’s report will show that growth was “slower in quarter 1.”
“This largely reflects the strength and very strong pace of growth in the fourth quarter,” Psaki continued. “When taken together, growth over the two quarters is expected to be at a solid pace, if we look at it over time, which is how we look at data.”
“And looking under the hood, the slowdown relative to quarter 4 is mainly for technical reasons, like the change in inventory,” she added. “So last quarter, companies built up their inventories very quickly, and growth in inventories are expected to be slower, though still positive, this quarter.”
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You can watch Wednesday’s briefing in full below.
