US economy grew in fourth quarter, but barely

The US economy grew for the last quarter in 2007, but only a mere 0.6 per cent. Housing slowdown and spending reduce growth.

The Commerce Department released information today showing that the US economy did see some growth in the final quarter of 2007, but a fraction of what would be considered good at just 0.6 per cent.

The main causes of such a drop in growth included a slowdown in the housing market, especially in the construction market for new homes which fell to the lowest level in 26 years. Additionally, consumers did not spend as much as they normally due, which could be a sign of an impending recession.

Economists believe that there will be slow months ahead for the use as several government resources are used to help hold back a full scale recession. The government's stimulus package which passed the House Tuesday may help to hold back the recession. It is not yet approved by the other body in Congress, the Senate, where it faces some opposition.

Numbers also showed that the economy grew by 2.2 per cent for all of 2007. This is the smallest growth the country has seen since 2002.

As reported by the Associated Press, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez said, "We are not happy with 0.6 per cent GDP growth. We now need the full Congress to move forward as soon as possible because consumers – the American people – are waiting for that check and that is going to help them."