Real gross domestic product (GDP) contracted at an annualized rate of 2.9 percent in the first quarter of 2014, according to the third estimate GDP report, marking the first quarterly decline in three years. The contraction in first quarter real GDP primarily reflected declines in private inventory investment and net exports. The latest revisions reflect a weaker pace of health care spending than previously assumed, which caused a reduction of the consumer spending estimate from 2.4 percent to 1.0 percent. Net exports were also revised down.
