The economy grew at a much faster rate than initially thought during the fourth quarter of 2001, logging the strongest quarterly gain for the year and supporting the belief the economy is recovering, the Commerce Department reported Thursday.
Gross domestic product, the broadest gauge of the economy’s health, expanded at a revised 1.4 percent rate in the final three months of last year, seven times the 0.2 percent pace first estimated.
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, calling saving a crucial part of economic growth, said Thursday it was important for the economy the source of saving be sustainable and invested in a way that helped boost productivity. In December, the personal-saving rate in the U.S. was 1 percent, low by historical standards. Projected U.S. budget deficits imply less government saving, which will weigh on the overall national saving rate.