Breaking: GDP grew at just 1.6% last quarter

The economy grew at a much slower pace this spring than previously estimated, mostly due to the largest surge in imports in 26 years and a slower buildup in inventories.

The Commerce Department says the nation’s gross domestic product—the broadest measure of the economy’s output—grew at a 1.6 percent annual rate in the April-to-June period. That’s down from an initial estimate of 2.4 percent last month and much slower than the first quarter’s 3.7 percent pace. Many economists had expected a sharper drop.