US economic growth accelerates in third quarter

The U.S. economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter, driven by robust consumer spending, but momentum appears to have faded ​amid the rising cost of living and recent government shutdown.

Gross domestic product increased at a ‌4.3% annualized rate last quarter, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis said in its initial estimate of third-quarter GDP ‌on Tuesday. The economy grew at a 3.8% pace in the second quarter. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP would rise at a 3.3% pace.