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THURSDAY, September 28, 2006 GDP GREW 2.6 PERCENT IN SECOND QUARTER The economy grew at an annual rate of 2.6 percent in the second quarter, 0.3 percentage point less than in the “preliminary” estimates and 3.0 percentage points less than in the first quarter, according to the “final” estimates released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. BEA also released its final estimate of second-quarter corporate profits, which increased 18.5 percent from the same quarter a year ago. Gross Domestic Product The deceleration in second-quarter GDP growth primarily reflected downturns in consumer spending on durable goods, in investment in equipment and software, and in Federal government spending. The downward revision reflected a downward revision to inventory investment and an upward revision to imports of services. Quarter-to-Quarter Growth in Real GDP 8 Percent 6 4 2 0 III IV 2002 I II III 2003 IV I II III 2004 IV I II III 2005 IV I II 2006 Real GDP growth is measured at seasonally adjusted annual rates. Corporate Profits Second-quarter corporate profits grew 18.5 percent from the same quarter a year ago. Profits of financial corporations increased 29.6 percent and profits of nonfinancial corporations increased 10.7 percent. Year-over-Year Growth in Corporate Profits 25 Percent 20 15 10 5 0 III IV 2002 I II III 2003 IV I II III 2004 IV I II 2005 III IV I II 2006 Corporate profits growth is measured as the percent change from the same quarter one year ago. BEA data—including GDP, personal income, the balance of payments, foreign direct investment, the input-output accounts, and economic data for states, local areas, and industries—are available on the BEA Web site: www.bea.gov. E-mail alerts are also available. NOTE: The “advance” estimate of GDP for the third quarter of 2006 will be released on October 27, 2006. Contact: Ralph Stewart 202–606–2649 Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce