The US economy grew much faster than expected in the final three months of last year, defying expectations.
America missed going into recession – which many analysts had forecast was inevitable.
Gross domestic product, a measure of all the goods and services produced, jumped 3.3 percent annually in October through December, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
The Wall Street consensus had been for a fourth quarter growth rate of just 2 percent.
It was a slightly slower pace than the 4.9 percent rate in the third quarter from July through September, thanks to a surge in consumer spending.
Wall Street’s main indexes were poised for a higher open, as a strong economic growth raised hopes of the likelihood of a ‘soft landing’ – when inflation is brought down without a recession or big increase in unemployment.
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.