The BEA Wire | BEA's Official Blog

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 0.5 percent in the first quarter of 2016, according to the “advance” estimate released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the fourth quarter of 2015, real GDP increased 1.4 percent.

The Information industry, more than just about any other industry, illustrates just how much the U.S. economy has changed over time.

Information; construction; and professional, scientific, and technical services were the leading contributors to the increase in U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2015. Overall, 16 of 22 industry groups contributed to the 1.4 percent increase in real GDP in the fourth quarter.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Treasury Department are preparing to implement a change that will simplify how certain cross-border investments by or into private funds are reported on Treasury International Capital, or TIC, surveys of portfolio investment and BEA surveys of direct invest

For years, BEA has provided state-by-state information on people’s incomes, which includes refundable tax credits and rebates. But BEA did not break out the refundable tax credit statistics.

The U.S. monthly international trade deficit increased in February 2016 according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis and the U.S. Census Bureau. The deficit increased from $45.9 billion in January (revised) to $47.1 billion in February, as imports increased more than exports.

The U.S. net international investment position was -$7,356.8 billion (preliminary) at the end of the fourth quarter of 2015 as the value of U.S. liabilities exceeded the value of U.S. assets. At the end of the third quarter, the net position was -$7,311.6 billion (revised).

Personal income increased 0.2 percent in February after increasing 0.5 percent in January. Wages and salaries, the largest component of personal income, decreased 0.1 percent in February after increasing 0.6 percent in January.

Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased 1.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, according to the “third” estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The growth rate was 0.4 percent point more than the “second” estimate released last month.

State personal income grew 0.8 percent on average in the fourth quarter of 2015, down from 1.0 percent in the third quarter.

State personal income grew on average 4.4 percent in 2015, the same rate as in 2014. Growth of state personal income—the sum of net earnings by place of residence, property income, and personal current transfer receipts—ranged from -0.2 percent in North Dakota to 6.3 percent in California.

The U.S.