U.S. GDP surged 4 percent in Q2

The BLS' first measurement of Q2 GDP growth is out — and it brings two pleasant surprises.

The economy expanded at a 4 percent annualized rate, significantly above the 3 percent rate that economists had expected.

And first quarter GDP — which had been shown to have contracted at a 2.9 percent annualized rate, a slip mostly attributed to unseasonably bad weather — was revised from new data to have only contracted at 2.1 percent.

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So, strong second quarter growth more than made up for the first quarter setback, setting the stage for strong overall 2014 growth and a continued recovery.