GDP disappoints

Friday, Jan. 30, 2004 | 11:09 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- The economy expanded at a weaker- than-expected 4 percent annual pace from October through December as consumer spending slowed. Americans' confidence and a Chicago manufacturing index rose more than anticipated this month, suggesting faster growth this quarter.

Gross domestic product rose at about half the pace of the third quarter, the Commerce Department said in Washington. The National Association of Purchasing Management-Chicago's factory index increased to 65.9, the highest in almost a decade, from December's 61.2. A reading above 50 signals growth.

The 6.1 percent average growth pace in the last half of 2003 is the strongest since the first six months of 1984. Meanwhile, the University of Michigan's index of consumer sentiment rose to the highest since November 2000. The final measure for January was 103.8, compared with a preliminary reading of 103.2 and a final 92.6 in December.

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