Weak exports may crimp U.S. fourth-quarter economic growth

U.S. economic growth likely slowed in the fourth quarter as a plunge in shipments of soybeans weighed on exports, but a healthy increase in consumer spending and rising business investment should underscore the economy's underlying momentum. Gross domestic product probably increased at a 2.2 percent annual rate after accelerating at a 3.5 percent pace in the third quarter, according to a Reuters survey of economists. The government will publish its first estimate of fourth-quarter GDP on Friday