Growing GDP

GDP 19Q1 GDP came in at a remarkably strong 3.2%; don’t be deceived. Growth was pushed up by an unsustainable surge in inventories, a huge one-time jump in state and local government spending, and a drop in imports precipitated by a rise in 18Q4 imports in advance of Chinese tariffs that never materialized. That said, the economy chugs along, and more importantly, inflation remains MIA, meaning no rate hikes anytime soon.