US GDP slowed sharply in Q3 but big rebound expected in Q4

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy slowed to a modest annual rate of 2.1% in the July-September quarter, slightly better than first reported. But economists are predicting a solid rebound in the current quarter as long as rising inflation and a recent uptick in COVID cases do not derail activity. The increase in the gross domestic product, the economy’s total output of goods and services, was up from an initial estimate of 2% for the third quarter. But the revision was still well below the solid gains of 6.3% in the first quarter this year and 6.7% in the second quarter.