The economy grew robustly as Americans continued to spend : NPR

Consumer spending has been a key driver of the U.S. economy, but polls show Americans are increasingly concerned about their finances.

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Spencer Platt/Getty Images

The U.S. economy experienced robust growth in July, August and September, fueled by stable consumer spending, particularly on health care.

Gross domestic product — the nation’s broadest measure of economic activity — grew in the third quarter at an annual rate of 4.3%, far faster than the 3.8% expansion seen between April and June, according to the Commerce Department on Tuesday.

Growth has accelerated since the early months of 2025, when the U.S. economy contracted at an annual rate of 0.6% as President Trump prepared drastic global tariffs.

The latest figures are already quite old. Tuesday’s report was originally scheduled to be released in late October, but was disrupted by the historic government shutdown. And it comes now as polls reveal Americans are increasingly glum about President Trump’s handling of the economy and the high cost of living.

Third-quarter data shows a decline in commercial and residential investment. State and local spending has increased. The impacts of trade fluctuations were more mixed in the latest report than at the start of the year: imports of goods declined, while exports increased. Imports are subtracted from the government’s measure of domestic economic activity, so they tend to depress GDP.

Americans continued to spend but are becoming more cautious

Consumer spending, which remains the key driver of the U.S. economy, increased in the third quarter, according to the Commerce report. People have been spending more on hospital and nursing home services, prescription drugs, and “information processing equipment,” like computer hardware, likely as part of the AI ​​boom.

Consumer spending held up for much of the year; However, according to a recent survey, more and more people today say they feel depressed about their financial prospects.

Inflation eased significantly, with consumer prices increasing slightly by 2.7% in November from a year earlier. Prices of some food items continued to fall, but not enough to offset rising costs, such as rent, electricity and health insurance.

On average, workers’ wages have increased faster than prices. But those wage gains have slowed in recent months as a slowing labor market has reduced workers’ bargaining power for higher wages. Wealthier shoppers have supported much of America’s spending at stores and restaurants.

The latest NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found that just 36 percent of Americans approve of President Trump’s handling of the economy, his worst mark in the six years Marists have been asking the question.

NPR’s Scott Horsley contributed to this report.