Thursday 27 March 2014 8:34 am

US economic growth revised up by statisticians

Growth in the US has been a little more spectacular than we thought.

Estimates of GDP expansion for the fourth quarter of 2013 have been revised up from to an annualised 2.6 per cent, from an initial estimate of 2.4 per cent.

Much of the upward momentum came from a big revision to personal consumption, now seen as being 3.3 per cent higher in the final quarter of last year.

Economists had expected revisions to show that growth was even higher still, at 2.7 per cent.

Simultaneously, separate data releases show that initial jobless claims fell to 311,000 in the week to 21 March, down from 321,000. That's the best number since November.