US GDP growth slows in Q1 but better-than-expected at 2.3%

Washington (AFP) – Growth in the world’s largest economy slowed sharply in the first three months of the year amid a decline in exports, consumer spending and home buying, the Commerce Department announced Friday.

GDP expanded by 2.3 percent in the January-March period, according to a preliminary estimate, down from 2.9 percent in the final months of 2017. But growth was two tenths of a point better than a consensus forecast among economists.