A 6.5% rate of GDP growth would usually merit “celebrations in the streets”, says Neil Irwin in The New York Times. Yet America’s second-quarter 6.5% annualised growth disappointed: it was lower than predicted and showed that the recovery is running into “obstacles”.
Shortages of building materials meant that the housing sector “actually contracted” slightly despite huge demand. Getting back to normal is proving a “grind”; consumption of services is still 7.4% below where you would have predicted it to be pre-pandemic, while “spending on durable goods”, which boomed during lockdowns, is 34% higher. Rising cases of the Delta variant in America could also sap the recovery. Investors are recalibrating.
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