The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) has reported that real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of only 1.6 percent in the first quarter of 2024, according to the “advance” estimate. In the fourth quarter of 2023, real GDP increased at a much more encouraging pace of 3.4 percent. The small growth in the first quarter primarily reflected modest increases in consumer spending and housing investment, which were partly offset by a decrease in inventory investment. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased as well.