In the second quarter of 2024, the U.S. economy grew twice as fast as it did in the first quarter, supported by consumer spending and private inventory investment. Furthermore, the data from the GDP report suggests that inflation is cooling. The GDP price index rose 2.3% for the second quarter, down from a 3.1% increase in the first quarter of 2024. The Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index, which measures inflation (or deflation) across various consumer expenses and reflects changes in consumer behavior, rose 2.6% in the second quarter. This is down from a 3.4% increase in the first quarter of 2024. According to the “advance” estimate by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at a robust 2.8% annual pace in the second quarter of 2024. This is faster than the 1.4% gain in the first quarter of 2024. This quarter’s growth was close to NAHB’s forecast of a 2.7% increase.