Economic growth in the third quarter was much faster than initially expected, at 5 percent annually.
The quarterly growth was the fastest since 2003.
The Department of Commerce revised Tuesday gross domestic product for the quarter upward well beyond economists’ expectations in its final estimate. Previously, growth had been estimated at 3.9 percent annually.
Growth had also clocked in above 4 percent in the second quarter, at 4.6 percent. Together, the two quarters were the fastest for growth since 2003.
The upward revisions to the third quarter reflected additional data showing strength in consumer spending and business investment.
Overall, the strong growth through the late summer and early fall was driven in large part by consumer spending, which accounted for 2.21 percentage points of growth. In particular, people spent on big-ticket items like cars and appliances.
But the uptick in commerce was broad-based. Business investment picked up, as did housing, exports and government spending.
At the federal level, the boost in total spending was attributable in large part to a massive 16 percent increase in defense spending.
The Commerce Department will report on fourth quarter GDP on Jan. 30.
This story was first published at 8:48 a.m. and has been updated.
