News Release

EMBARGOED UNTIL RELEASE AT 8:30 A.M. EDT, Friday, October 28, 2016
BEA 16-57

Gross Domestic Product, 3rd quarter 2016 (advance estimate)

Real gross domestic product increased at an annual rate of 2.9 percent in the third quarter of 2016
(table 1), according to the "advance" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the
second quarter, real GDP increased 1.4 percent.

The Bureau emphasized that the third-quarter advance estimate released today is based on source data
that are incomplete or subject to further revision by the source agency (see “Source Data for the
Advance Estimate” on page 3). The "second" estimate for the third quarter, based on more complete
data, will be released on November 29, 2016.
Real GDP: Percent Change from Preceding Quarter
The increase in real GDP in the third quarter reflected positive contributions from personal consumption
expenditures (PCE), exports, private inventory investment, federal government spending, and
nonresidential fixed investment that were partly offset by negative contributions from residential fixed
investment and state and local government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation
of GDP, increased (table 2).


The acceleration in real GDP growth in the third quarter reflected an upturn in private inventory
investment, an acceleration in exports, a smaller decrease in state and local government spending, and
an upturn in federal government spending. These were partly offset by a smaller increase in PCE, and a
larger increase in imports.

Current-dollar GDP increased 4.4 percent, or $201.1 billion, in the third quarter to a level of $18,651.2
billion. In the second quarter, current dollar GDP increased 3.7 percent, or $168.5 billion (table 1 and
table 3).

The price index for gross domestic purchases increased 1.6 percent in the third quarter, compared with
an increase of 2.1 percent in the second quarter (table 4). The PCE price index increased 1.4 percent,
compared with an increase of 2.0 percent. Excluding food and energy prices, the PCE price index
increased 1.7 percent, compared with an increase of 1.8 percent (appendix table A).


Personal Income (table 10)

Current-dollar personal income increased $153.6 billion in the third quarter, compared with an increase
of $153.1 billion in the second.

Disposable personal income increased $125.3 billion, or 3.6 percent, in the third quarter, compared
with an increase of $140.6 billion, or 4.1 percent, in the second. Real disposable personal income
increased 2.2 percent, compared with an increase of 2.1 percent.

Personal saving was $800.6 billion in the third quarter, compared with $793.5 billion in the second. The
personal saving rate -- personal saving as a percentage of disposable personal income -- was 5.7 percent
in the third quarter, the same as in the second.


Source Data for the Advance Estimate
       Information on the assumptions used for unavailable source data in the advance estimate is
provided in a Technical Note that is posted with the news release on BEA’s Web site. Within a few days
after the release, a detailed "Key Source Data and Assumptions" file is posted on the Web site. For
information on updates to GDP, see the "Additional Information" section that follows.

                                        *          *          *

                           Next release:  November 29, 2016 at 8:30 A.M. EST
                     Gross Domestic Product:  Third Quarter 2016 (Second Estimate)
                     Corporate Profits:  Third Quarter 2016 (Preliminary Estimate)

                                        *          *          *

                                         Release Dates in 2017


Estimate                         2016: IV and annual    2017: I           2017: II           2017: III
Gross Domestic Product
 Advance                         January 27             April 28          July 28            October 27
 Second                          February 28            May 26            August 30          November 29
 Third                           March 30               June 29           September 28       December 21

Corporate Profits
 Preliminary                     …                      May 26            August 30          November 29
 Revised                         March 30               June 29           September 28       December 21