First-Quarter GDP Rises 3.2%

The U.S. gross domestic product rose at a 3.2% annual rate in the first quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday.

GDP rose at a 3.6% rate in the fourth quarter, and the two consecutive gains marked the economy’s best performance since the second half of 2003, Bloomberg reported.

The first-quarter increase in the measure of goods and services was in line with economists’ forecasts, Bloomberg said.

Consumer spending, which accounts for about 70% of the economy, rose 3.6%, from 1.6% in the fourth quarter, marking the biggest gain since the first quarter of 2007. Economists had projected a 3.3% increase.

Friday’s figure was the first of three; Commerce will revise it two more times.