U.S. economy slows to a still better-than-expected 2.1 percent rate in 2nd quarter

The U.S. economy grew at a 2.1 percent annual rate in the second quarter of 2019, slowing down from the previous quarter but not as much as had been expected, The Washington Post reports.

The Commerce Department on Friday reported the 2.1 percent figure, which Axios notes was a "significant slowdown" from the first quarter's 3.1 percent growth, but "still better than the 1.9 percent economists had expected." Bloomberg notes that consumer spending was strong and higher than estimated, rising 4.3 percent. Business investment, however, was weaker.

The New York Times writes that "the strong job market and robust consumer spending are keeping the recovery on track, even as trade tensions and a slowing global economy are threatening to knock it off course," urging readers not to "panic" because there's "little reason to think" economic growth is "about to stall out."

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The Commerce Department on Friday also revised its previous estimate that compares the growth in 2018's fourth quarter to 2017's fourth quarter, downgrading it from 3 percent to 2.5 percent, The Associated Press reports, meaning President Trump's goal of 3 percent growth was not reached by this metric. Still, AP writes that "the changes don't significantly alter the broader trajectory of the economy."