Economy Grows 3.2 Percent During First Quarter, Outpacing Expectations

The economy grew 3.2 percent during the first quarter of this year, beating analysts' and investors' expectations, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).Economists had expected a first-quarter showing of 2.5 percent GDP growth, only slightly higher than the 2.2 percent growth in the last quarter of 2018. Instead, GDP grew 3.2 percent, marking the economy's best first-quarter performance since 2015.The BEA attributed the favorable growth rate to