US economy grew at fastest rate since 1984

5.7% growth

Elliot Gulliver-Needham
clock • 1 min read

US GDP grew at 5.7% last year, its fastest rate since 1984, despite two new virus variants emerging in 2021.

Growth was uneven with the economy growing at 6.9% from October to December, a steep acceleration from growth of just 2.3% in the previous quarter. The growth created 6.4m jobs in 2021, but also saw the highest inflation in 40 years. After shrinking in the first three quarters of 2021, inventories rose at a $173.5bn annual rate in the last quarter, which may alleviate the concerns of supply chains problems that have plagued 2021. Federal Reserve holds interest rates while signalling hike in March Housing fell 0.7% in the last quarter, its third consecutive drop, though it remain...

To continue reading this article...

Join Professional Adviser for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, industry insights and market intelligence
  • Stay ahead of the curve with spotlights on emerging trends and technologies
  • Receive breaking news stories straight to your inbox in the daily newsletters
  • Make smart business decisions with the latest developments in regulation, investing retirement and protection
  • Members-only access to the editor’s weekly Friday commentary
  • Be the first to hear about our events and awards programmes

Join

 

Already a Professional Adviser member?

Login

More on Investment

M&G's PruFund coming to Scottish Widows Platform

M&G's PruFund coming to Scottish Widows Platform

First third-party platform launch

Jen Frost
clock 08 June 2026 • 2 min read
Investors move from cash to US equities as confidence improves

Investors move from cash to US equities as confidence improves

Investment Association figures show

clock 05 June 2026 • 3 min read
The active funds beating the MSCI World for the past decade

The active funds beating the MSCI World for the past decade

'The next decade could be very different'

Darius McDermott
clock 04 June 2026 • 5 min read