Breaking: US GDP grows at an annual rate of 3.3% in Q4 vs. 2% expected
|The real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the US expanded at an annualized rate of 3.3% in the fourth quarter, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis' (BEA) first estimate showed on Thursday. This reading followed the 4.9% growth recorded in the third quarter and surpassed the market expectation of 2%.
Follow our live coverage of the US GDP release and the market reaction.
"The increase in real GDP reflected increases in consumer spending, exports, state and local government spending, nonresidential fixed investment, federal government spending, private inventory investment, and residential fixed investment," the BEA noted in its press release. "Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased."
Other details of the report showed that the Gross Domestic Product Price Index was 1.5% in the fourth quarter, down from 3.3% in the third quarter. Finally, the Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index rose 2% on a quarterly basis, matching the previous quarter's increase and the market expectation.
Market reaction to US GDP data
The US Dollar Index edged higher with the immediate reaction but quickly erased its gains. At the time of press, the US Dollar Index was down 0.05% on the day at 103.15.
US Dollar price this week
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies this week. US Dollar was the weakest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | CAD | AUD | JPY | NZD | CHF | |
| USD | 0.01% | -0.24% | 0.48% | -0.02% | -0.43% | -0.13% | -0.42% | |
| EUR | 0.05% | -0.25% | 0.47% | -0.03% | -0.43% | -0.13% | -0.42% | |
| GBP | 0.24% | 0.25% | 0.71% | 0.23% | -0.18% | 0.13% | -0.18% | |
| CAD | -0.48% | -0.46% | -0.72% | -0.49% | -0.90% | -0.58% | -0.89% | |
| AUD | 0.02% | 0.03% | -0.22% | 0.41% | -0.41% | -0.10% | -0.39% | |
| JPY | 0.42% | 0.43% | 0.22% | 0.89% | 0.41% | 0.32% | 0.00% | |
| NZD | 0.12% | 0.12% | -0.13% | 0.58% | 0.10% | -0.33% | -0.29% | |
| CHF | 0.42% | 0.42% | 0.18% | 0.89% | 0.39% | -0.02% | 0.29% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Euro from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent EUR (base)/JPY (quote).
This section below was published as a preview of the US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data at 08:00 GMT.
- United States Gross Domestic Product is forecast to grow at an annualized rate of 2% in Q4.
- The resilience of the US economy could allow the Fed to delay the policy pivot.
- Investors will also pay close attention to the Gross Domestic Price Deflator reading.
The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) report for the fourth quarter, to be released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) on Thursday, is forecast to show an expansion of the US economy at an annualized rate of 2% following the impressive 4.9% growth recorded in the previous quarter.
After staying under persistent bearish pressure in the last quarter of 2023, the US Dollar (USD) managed to stage a rebound in January. The DXY USD Index is up nearly 2% since the beginning of the year, with markets reassessing the timing of the Federal Reserve (Fed) policy pivot.
US Gross Domestic Product forecast: What numbers could tell us
Thursday's US economic docket highlights the release of the preliminary GDP print for the fourth quarter, scheduled at 13:30 GMT. The first estimate is expected to show that the world's largest economy grew by 2% in the last three months of 2023, a relatively healthy pace despite being much lower than the third quarter’s 4.9% expansion.
Inventory accumulation was the primary driver behind the GDP growth in the third quarter. As this component tends to move in the opposite direction from quarter to quarter, it will not be a major surprise to see a steep decline in the expansion rate toward the end of 2023.
Market participants will also pay close attention to the GDP Price Deflator reading, also known as the GDP Price Index, which measures the changes in the prices of services and goods produced in the US. The GDP Price Deflator climbed to 3.3% in Q3 from 1.7% in Q2, suggesting that inflation had a bigger positive impact on growth than in the second quarter.
Previewing the US GDP growth data, “In terms of economic output, we expect real GDP to have registered a below-trend 1.6% q/q AR expansion in 23Q4, much slower than Q3's blockbuster and unsustainable 4.9% increase,” TD Securities analysts said and continued:
“In the details, we look for consumer spending to have led the deceleration in activity (though likely growing at a still decent pace), while inventories are expected to be a major drag. We also forecast business investment to stay downbeat, as capex appears to have remained mostly impaired in Q4 (equipment investment has contracted in five out of the last six quarters). Even if our below-consensus projection is realized, output likely still rose at a very strong 2.4% pace in 2023 (2.7% Q4/Q4).”
When is the GDP print released, and how can it affect the USD?
The US GDP report will be released at 13:30 GMT on Thursday. Ahead of the event, the US Dollar stays resilient against its rivals on growing expectations for a delay in the Federal Reserve’s upcoming rate cut.
Before the Federal Reserve blackout period started on January 21, several policymakers pushed back against the market anticipation for a 25 basis points (bps) Fed rate cut in March. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said that she believes the central bank has a lot of work left to do on bringing inflation back down to the Fed's 2% target and argued that it’s too early to think “rate cuts are around the corner.” Similarly, Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic noted that his baseline scenario is for rate reductions to start sometime in the third quarter.
The CME FedWatch Tool’s probability of a 25 bps rate cut in March declined below 50% in the second half of January from nearly 80% in late December, reflecting the shift in market positioning.
A stronger-than-forecast GDP growth in Q4 could feed into expectations that the Fed is likely to refrain from lowering the policy rate in March and provide a boost to the USD with the immediate reaction. In case the GDP reading arrives near the market consensus of 2%, a GDP Price Deflator print at or above 3% could help the USD hold its ground, while a decrease toward 2% could hurt the currency.
On the other hand, a disappointing growth figure below 1.5% could go against the “soft landing” narrative. In this scenario, markets could lean toward a Fed rate cut in March and trigger a decline in US Treasury bond yields, causing the USD to suffer losses against its major rivals.
Eren Sengezer, European Session Lead Analyst at FXStreet, shares a brief technical outlook for the USD Index (DXY):
“The Relative Strength Index (RSI) indicator on the daily chart holds near 60, highlighting the near-term bullish bias. The 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) forms a pivot point at 103.50. In case DXY stabilizes above that level and starts using it as support, 104.40 (100-day SMA) and 105.00 (psychological level) could be set as the next bullish targets. On the flip side, the Fibonacci 38.2% retracement of the October-December downtrend forms strong support at 103.00 before 102.50 (20-day SMA) and 102.00 (Fibonacci 23.6% retracement).”
US Dollar FAQs
What is the US Dollar?
The US Dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States of America, and the ‘de facto’ currency of a significant number of other countries where it is found in circulation alongside local notes. It is the most heavily traded currency in the world, accounting for over 88% of all global foreign exchange turnover, or an average of $6.6 trillion in transactions per day, according to data from 2022.
Following the second world war, the USD took over from the British Pound as the world’s reserve currency. For most of its history, the US Dollar was backed by Gold, until the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1971 when the Gold Standard went away.
How do the decisions of the Federal Reserve impact the US Dollar?
The most important single factor impacting on the value of the US Dollar is monetary policy, which is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability (control inflation) and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these two goals is by adjusting interest rates.
When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, the Fed will raise rates, which helps the USD value. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates, which weighs on the Greenback.
What is Quantitative Easing and how does it influence the US Dollar?
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve can also print more Dollars and enact quantitative easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system.
It is a non-standard policy measure used when credit has dried up because banks will not lend to each other (out of the fear of counterparty default). It is a last resort when simply lowering interest rates is unlikely to achieve the necessary result. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice to combat the credit crunch that occurred during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy US government bonds predominantly from financial institutions. QE usually leads to a weaker US Dollar.
What is Quantitative Tightening and how does it influence the US Dollar?
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing in new purchases. It is usually positive for the US Dollar.
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