U.S. GDP Growth Slowed to 2% in Second Quarter

The Commerce Department reports the U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 2 percent in the second quarter, a dropoff from the measures of 3 percent and more seen over the past year. Growth is expected to slow in the coming quarters as global weakness and rising trade tensions exert a toll, analysts’ forecasts suggest. Since President Trump took office in 2017, the economy has achieved four quarters of his goal of 3 percent or higher, but given the labor force and productivity issues facing the U.S., economists doubt that pace can be achieved on a sustained basis, the AP reports. Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, said he expects a recession by next year if Trump carries through with increased tariffs on China next month and in December.