GDP Rose 2% in Q1 2026

Washington, DC, April 30, 2025-Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 2.0% in Q1 2026 (January, February, and March), according to the advance estimate released by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. 

In Q4 2025, real GDP increased 0.5%.

The contributors to the increase in real GDP in the first quarter were investment, exports, consumer spending, and government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, also increased.

Compared to Q4 2025, the acceleration in real GDP in the first quarter of 2026 reflected upturns in government spending and exports, and an acceleration in investment that were partly offset by a deceleration in consumer spending. Imports turned up.

“Atsi Sheth, the chief credit officer at Moody's Ratings, described the economy ahead of the GDP report as ‘fragile resilience’ because the U.S. isn't in a recession, and both business and consumers are still holding up,” reports Business Insider. “The economy has also been fairly resistant to trade shocks, she added. However, she said the pillars holding up the economy are increasingly thinning as more shocks emerge.”