United States: Slowest GDP growth in three years

US GDP grew by 1.6% y-o-y in 3Q (2Q:2.6%), the slowest rate of expansion in more than three years. The moderation in growth was sharper than the expectation of 2.1% polled by Briefing.com. The slower GDP growth was led mainly by the housing sector correction and widening trade deficit. Residential housing construction fell by 17.4% y-o-y in 3Q while the trade deficit widened to US$639.9bn in 3Q (2Q: US$624.2bn). Nevertheless, most economists expects the GDP growth to rebound in 4Q aided by the rebound in consumer sentiment amid falling energy prices.