President Biden Faces Re-election Hurdle with Slower-than-Expected US Economy in First Quarter of 2024

The US economy grew less than expected in the first quarter of 2024, according to the Commerce Department. This slowdown is likely to be a significant issue in President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign against his Republican challenger, former President Donald Trump in November. Data shows that the US only saw a 1.6% GDP growth in the first three months of the year, much lower than the 2.4% predicted by analysts.

Despite this decrease in growth, the US economy remains ahead of other major industrialized economies. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicts a 2.7% growth rate for the US for the entire year of 2024, which is an increase from last year. This is significantly higher than the growth rates expected for other G7 countries such as Germany’s growth outlook of just 0.3%.

The decline in consumer spending and exports has contributed to the slowdown in growth, as well as state, federal, and local spending decreases. However, currencies in the G20 group of major economies have depreciated against the US dollar this year due to various factors such as inflation and trade tensions with China. Although these factors have impacted exports and contributed to slower economic growth, they have also led to an overall economic outlook for the country that remains relatively strong compared to other industrialized states.