| Consensus | Consensus Range | Actual | Previous | |
| Quarter over Quarter | 0.5% | 0.5% to 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.3% |
| Year over Year | 0.9% | 0.9% to 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.8% |
Highlights
Economic growth picked up in the third quarter, expanding 0.5 percent quarter-on-quarter, following 0.3 percent growth in the second. Compared to the same quarter a year ago, the economy grew 0.9 percent.
Exports were up 3.2 percent during the reporting quarter, boosted by transportation equipment, after a tepid second quarter in which they grew 0.3 percent. Import growth slowed modestly in the third quarter to 1.3 percent from 1.5 percent in the second. Net trade contributed 0.6 percent growth. At the same time, inventories were a drag, subtracting 0.4 percent from the expansion.
Excluding inventories, there was an uptick in domestic demand in the third quarter, which contributed 0.3 percent to overall growth after 0.2 percent in the second quarter.
Household continue to remain cautious, with spending up a marginal 0.1 percent in the third quarter, thereby matching the second quarter pace. Although consumers spent 1.0 percent less on food products, they shelled out 1.3 percent more on energy in the third quarter, a sharp reversal from the 2.3 percent decline in the second quarter.
The data suggest that consumers are dipping into savings to fund their spending, with the household savings rate falling to 18.4 percent in the quarter after 18.7 percent in the second. Conversely, government expenditures were higher, growing 0.5 percent in the second and third quarters.
Today’s results show the economy is on mildly solid footing, with increased domestic demand encouraging. Exports were also a positive sign, but it remains to be seen if there is robustness beyond the transportation sector.
Market Consensus Before Announcement
The consensus sees no revision from the flash with increases of 0.5 percent on quarter and 0.9 percent on year in Q3.