WASHINGTON, Aug 29: The US economy grew slightly faster than first estimated in the second quarter but remained sluggish, a government update showed on Wednesday.

The Commerce Department said gross domestic product — a broad measure of the nation’s goods and services — rose at an annualised rate of 1.7 per cent in the April-June period.

Its initial July estimate of GDP growth was 1.5 per cent.

The rate was slightly better than the 1.6 per cent pace expected by most analysts, but lagged the first quarter’s 2.0pcrise.

The Commerce Department said the revision mainly reflected a reduction in the figures for imports, which subtract from GDP, and higher exports and spending by consumers and state and local government.

“That the slowdown in growth, and personal consumption in particular, were not as significant as first estimated is a positive sign, but does little to alter the view that the US economy continues to tick along at a moderate pace and struggles to break out into a full-on recovery with consistently above-potential growth,” said Michael Gapen, a Barclays analyst.

Growth was the slowest since the third quarter of 2011 and was expected to remain sluggish in the current third quarter.—AFP