The U.S. economy grew at a 6.9% annual rate in the final quarter of 2021 but recently lost momentum, with business activity undermined by pandemic-induced shortages of supplies and workers.
The Commerce Department on Thursday said the increase in the U.S. gross domestic product, the broadest measure of goods and services, accelerated in the fourth quarter from a 2.3% annual rate in the prior three-month period. That marked the sixth consecutive quarter of growth since the pandemic caused a short but severe recession in spring 2020.