1st LD: U.S. economy grows 2.6% in Q4 2017

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. economy grew 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017, lower than the 3.2 percent in the previous quarter, the Commerce Department said Friday.

However, for the whole year, the economy expanded 2.3 percent, higher than the 1.5-percent increase in 2016.

Consumer spending, accounting for more than two thirds of the economy, remained the major growth engine. Consumption grew 3.8 percent in the quarter, the fastest growth in three years.

It contributed 2.58 percentage points to the growth in the fourth quarter, compared to 1.49 percentage points in the third quarter.

Private inventory investment slowed in the fourth quarter, which subtracted 0.67 percentage point from the economic growth.

With a strong domestic demand, imports increased at their fastest rate in more than seven years, with a surge of 13.9 percent. Net exports also subtracted 1.13 percentage points from the GDP growth. Enditem