Despite Omicron Spread... US Q4 Growth Rate 6.9%, Annual 5.7%

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] The U.S. economy recorded a 6.9% growth in the fourth quarter of last year. Despite the spread of the new COVID-19 variant Omicron, it performed better than market expectations.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced on the 27th (local time) that the real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate (preliminary) for the fourth quarter of last year was 6.9% annualized.

This significantly exceeded the expert forecast of 5.5%. The U.S. quarterly GDP continued its positive streak for six consecutive quarters. Economic media CNBC reported, "Despite the rapid increase in Omicron cases and the likelihood of slowed employment and production due to employee sick leave, it far exceeded the previous quarter's (2.3%) growth."

Specifically, the retail sector grew as automobile dealers invested in inventory, and personal consumption expenditures increased in healthcare, transportation, and other areas.

The annual GDP of the U.S. last year increased by 5.7%, marking the largest growth since 7.2% in 1984.

However, concerns have arisen that the spread of Omicron from the end of the year disrupted economic activities and weakened growth momentum. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, "At present, Omicron is suppressing economic recovery." The outlet also added that economic growth depended on consumer spending, which showed signs of slowing in December last year.

Meanwhile, the number of new unemployment insurance claims in the U.S., released on the same day, turned to a downward trend. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, new unemployment claims for the week of January 16?22 were 260,000, down 30,000 from the previous week. This also fell short of the expert forecast of 265,000. The number of continuing unemployment claims, which are claims for unemployment benefits filed for at least two weeks, increased by 51,000 to 1.7 million.