U.S. economy grows 1.1% in 1st quarter of 2023

The U.S. economy grew an annualized 1.1 percent in real terms from January through March, marking the third straight quarter of increase, underpinned by brisk spending despite higher interest rates, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

The first estimate of gross domestic product, however, showed that the world’s No. 1 economy sharply slowed after expanding 3.2 percent and 2.6 percent in the third and fourth quarters of last year.

In the first quarter, the economy also grew far less than market expectations, with most analysts predicting earlier that the headline figure would be around 2 per...