News Release
These data have been superseded. Please see our latest releases for current estimates and contact information.
Gross Domestic Product, 3rd quarter 2012 (third estimate); Corporate Profits, 3rd quarter 2012 (revised estimate)
Real gross domestic product -- the output of goods and services produced by labor and property
located in the United States -- increased at an annual rate of 3.1 percent in the third quarter of 2012 (that
is, from the second quarter to the third quarter), according to the "third" estimate released by the Bureau
of Economic Analysis. In the second quarter, real GDP increased 1.3 percent.
The GDP estimate released today is based on more complete source data than were available for
the "second" estimate issued last month. In the second estimate, the increase in real GDP was 2.7
percent (see "Revisions" on page 3). The third estimate has not greatly changed the general picture of
the economy for the third quarter except that personal consumption expenditures (PCE) is now showing
a modest pickup, and imports is now showing a downturn.
The increase in real GDP in the third quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from
PCE, private inventory investment, federal government spending, residential fixed investment, and
exports that were partly offset by a negative contribution from nonresidential fixed investment. Imports,
which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, decreased.
The acceleration in real GDP in the third quarter primarily reflected upturns in private inventory
investment and in federal government spending, a downturn in imports, an upturn in state and local
government spending, and an acceleration in residential fixed investment that were partly offset by a
downturn in nonresidential fixed investment and a deceleration in exports.
___________________________________
FOOTNOTE. Quarterly estimates are expressed at seasonally adjusted annual
rates, unless otherwise specified. Quarter-to-quarter dollar changes are
differences between these published estimates. Percent changes are calculated
from unrounded data and are annualized. "Real" estimates are in chained
(2005) dollars. Price indexes are chain-type measures.
This news release is available on www.bea.gov along with the Technical Note and Highlights
related to this release. For information on revisions, see "Revisions to GDP, GDI, and Their Major Components".
________________________________________
Final sales of computers added 0.11 percentage point to the third-quarter change in real GDP
after subtracting 0.10 percentage point from the second-quarter change. Motor vehicle output subtracted
0.25 percentage point from the third-quarter change in real GDP after adding 0.20 percentage point to
the second-quarter change.
The price index for gross domestic purchases, which measures prices paid by U.S. residents,
increased 1.4 percent in the third quarter, the same increase as in the second estimate; this index
increased 0.7 percent in the second quarter. Excluding food and energy prices, the price index for gross
domestic purchases increased 1.2 percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 1.4 percent
in the second.
Real personal consumption expenditures increased 1.6 percent in the third quarter, compared
with an increase of 1.5 percent in the second. Durable goods increased 8.9 percent, in contrast to a
decrease of 0.2 percent. Nondurable goods increased 1.2 percent, compared with an increase of 0.6
percent. Services increased 0.6 percent, compared with an increase of 2.1 percent.
Real nonresidential fixed investment decreased 1.8 percent in the third quarter, in contrast to an
increase of 3.6 percent. Nonresidential structures was unchanged in the third quarter; in the second
quarter, structures increased 0.6 percent. Equipment and software decreased 2.6 percent in the third
quarter, in contrast to an increase of 4.8 percent in the second. Real residential fixed investment
increased 13.5 percent, compared with an increase of 8.5 percent.
Real exports of goods and services increased 1.9 percent in the third quarter, compared with an
increase of 5.3 percent in the second. Real imports of goods and services decreased 0.6 percent, in
contrast to an increase of 2.8 percent.
Real federal government consumption expenditures and gross investment increased 9.5 percent
in the third quarter, in contrast to a decrease of 0.2 percent in the second. National defense increased
12.9 percent, in contrast to a decrease of 0.2 percent. Nondefense increased 3.0 percent, in contrast to a
decrease of 0.4 percent. Real state and local government consumption expenditures and gross
investment increased 0.3 percent, in contrast to a decrease of 1.0 percent.
The change in real private inventories added 0.73 percentage point to the third-quarter change in
real GDP, after subtracting 0.46 percentage point from the second-quarter change. Private businesses
increased inventories $60.3 billion in the third quarter, following increases of $41.4 billion in the second
and $56.9 billion in the first.
Real final sales of domestic product -- GDP less change in private inventories -- increased 2.4
percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 1.7 percent in the second.
Gross domestic purchases
Real gross domestic purchases -- purchases by U.S. residents of goods and services wherever
produced -- increased 2.6 percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 1.0 percent in the
second.
Gross national product
Real gross national product -- the goods and services produced by the labor and property
supplied by U.S. residents -- increased 2.9 percent in the third quarter, compared with an increase of 2.1
percent in the second. GNP includes, and GDP excludes, net receipts of income from the rest of the
world, which decreased $4.7 billion in the third quarter after increasing $27.4 billion in the second; in
the third quarter, receipts decreased $2.0 billion, and payments increased $2.7 billion.
Current-dollar GDP
Current-dollar GDP -- the market value of the nation's output of goods and services -- increased
5.9 percent, or $225.4 billion, in the third quarter to a level of $15,811.0 billion. In the second quarter,
current-dollar GDP increased 2.8 percent, or $107.3 billion.
Gross domestic income
Real gross domestic income (GDI), which measures the output of the economy as the costs
incurred and the incomes earned in the production of GDP, increased 1.4 percent in the third quarter, in
contrast to a decrease of 0.7 percent in the second. For a given quarter, the estimates of GDP and GDI
may differ for a variety of reasons, including the incorporation of largely independent source data.
However, over longer time spans, the estimates of GDP and GDI tend to follow similar patterns of
change.
Revisions
The "third" estimate of the third-quarter percent change in real GDP is 0.4 percentage point, or
$14.4 billion, more than the "second" estimate issued last month, primarily reflecting an upward revision
to personal consumption expenditures, a downward revision to imports, and upward revisions to exports
and to state and local government spending.
Advance Estimate Second Estimate Third Estimate
(Percent change from preceding quarter)
Real GDP............................... 2.0 2.7 3.1
Current-dollar GDP..................... 5.0 5.5 5.9
Gross domestic purchases price index... 1.5 1.4 1.4
Corporate Profits
Profits from current production (corporate profits with inventory valuation and capital
consumption adjustments) increased $45.7 billion in the third quarter, compared with an increase of
$21.8 billion in the second quarter. Current-production cash flow (net cash flow with inventory
valuation adjustment) -- the internal funds available to corporations for investment -- increased $32.5
billion in the third quarter, compared with an increase of $6.0 billion in the second.
Taxes on corporate income increased $9.1 billion in the third quarter, in contrast to a decrease of
$10.3 billion in the second. Profits after tax with inventory valuation and capital consumption
adjustments increased $36.7 billion in the third quarter, compared with an increase of $31.9 billion in
the second. Dividends increased $12.8 billion, compared with an increase of $20.4 billion; current-
production undistributed profits increased $23.8 billion, compared with an increase of $11.6 billion.
Domestic profits of financial corporations increased $68.1 billion in the third quarter, in contrast
to a decrease of $39.7 billion in the second. Domestic profits of nonfinancial corporations decreased
$14.1 billion in the third quarter, in contrast to an increase of $27.8 billion in the second. In the third
quarter, real gross value added of nonfinancial corporations decreased, and profits per unit of real value
added was unchanged, reflecting an increase in unit prices that was offset by increases in both the unit
labor costs and unit nonlabor costs corporations incurred.
The rest-of-the-world component of profits decreased $8.2 billion in the third quarter, in contrast
to an increase of $33.6 billion in the second. This measure is calculated as (1) receipts by U.S. residents
of earnings from their foreign affiliates plus dividends received by U.S. residents from unaffiliated
foreign corporations minus (2) payments by U.S. affiliates of earnings to their foreign parents plus
dividends paid by U.S. corporations to unaffiliated foreign residents. The third-quarter decrease was
accounted for by a larger increase in payments than in receipts.
Profits before tax with inventory valuation adjustment is the best available measure of industry
profits because estimates of the capital consumption adjustment by industry do not exist. This measure
reflects depreciation-accounting practices used for federal income tax returns. According to this
measure, domestic profits of financial corporations increased. The increase in profits of financial
corporations was more than accounted for by an increase in "other" financial industries. Domestic
profits of nonfinancial corporations decreased, primarily reflecting decreases in wholesale trade and in
manufacturing that were partly offset by an increase in "other" nonfinancial industries. Within
manufacturing, durable goods industries accounted for most of the decrease. However, within
nondurable goods, a notable decrease in chemical products was largely offset by increases in "other"
nondurable goods and in petroleum and coal products.
Profits before tax increased $86.2 billion in the third quarter, in contrast to a decrease of $16.3
billion in the second. The before-tax measure of profits does not reflect, as does profits from current
production, the capital consumption and inventory valuation adjustments. These adjustments convert
depreciation of fixed assets and inventory withdrawals reported on a tax-return, historical-cost basis to
the current-cost measures used in the national income and product accounts. The capital consumption
adjustment increased $2.4 billion in the third quarter (from -$202.4 billion to -$200.0 billion), in contrast
to a decrease of $1.7 billion in the second. The inventory valuation adjustment decreased $42.8 billion
(from $16.0 billion to -$26.8 billion), in contrast to an increase of $39.7 billion.
* * *
BEAs national, international, regional, and industry estimates; the Survey of Current Business;
and BEA news releases are available without charge on BEAs Web site at www.bea.gov. By visiting
the site, you can also subscribe to receive free e-mail summaries of BEA releases and announcements.
* * *
Next release -- January 30, 2013, at 8:30 A.M. EST for:
Gross Domestic Product: Fourth Quarter and Annual 2012 (Advance Estimate)
Release Dates in 2013
2012: IV and 2012 annual 2013: I 2013: II 2013: III
Gross Domestic Product
Advance.......... January 30 April 26 July 31 October 30
Second........... February 28 May 30 August 29 November 26
Third............ March 28 June 26 September 26 December 20
Corporate Profits
Preliminary...... ........ May 30 August 29 November 26
Revised.......... March 28 June 26 September 26 December 20
- more -