U.S. economy expands 2.9% in Q4, slowing from 3.2% in Q3

The U.S. economy expanded 2.9% in the fourth quarter of 2022 despite recession fears, according to the Commerce Department's first reading released on Thursday.

The figure came higher than the market estimate of 2.6%, but it slowed down from 3.2% expansion in the third quarter of the last year.

The current dollar gross domestic product increased 6.5% at an annual rate, or $408.6 billion, in the October-December period to reach $26.13 trillion, the Commerce Department said in a statement.

In the July-September period, GDP increased 7.7%, or $475.4 billion, it said.

Real GDP increased 2.1% overall in 2022, which was also a slowdown from an increase of 5.9% in 2021, it added.

The slowdown in figures came as the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive monetary tightening policy saw multiple rate hikes last year, causing fears of a recession in the world's largest economy.