RJ and Makay

Economy watchers waiting for revised fourth-quarter GDP figures got a bit of a shock today. Instead of the upward revision from 3.2% to 3.3% they expected, the government adjusted its fourth-quarter estimate down to 2.8% on deep spending cuts by state and local governments.

However, the revised figure is still better than the third quarter's 2.6% growth rate. Furthermore, excluding inventories, the economy expanded at a 6.7% annual pace, the most since 1998.