Jan 25, 2024 - 19:25
By cnbc.com

Watch live: Treasury chief Yellen touts GDP numbers as a boon to the middle class

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen praised better-than-estimated economic indicators released Thursday.
The economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.3% in the last few months of 2023, faster than the Wall Street estimate.
Yellen also remarked on inflation numbers, which have significantly improved since the covid era.

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen praised the positive economic growth numbers on Thursday as a benefit for the middle class.

"Though some forecasters thought a recession last year was inevitable, President [Joe] Biden and I did not," Yellen said in a visit to the Economic Club of Chicago. "Instead of contracting, the economy has continued to grow, driven by American workers and President Biden's economic strategy."

The report released by the Commerce Department showed gross domestic product grew by a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 3.3% for the last few months of 2023; more rapidly than the Wall Street consensus estimate of 2%.

Economic growth for all of 2023 also beat the Wall Street outlook at the start of the year.

The indicators are evidence of "the fairest recovery on record," said Yellen, adding that the U.S. has "avoided financial pain for most middle-class American families" due to a strong post-pandemic recovery with faster relief from inflation than comparable countries.

Consumer spending, measured by core prices for personal consumption expenditures, also rose 2% in Q4 while the headline rate was 1.7%. The Federal Reserve uses core prices to measure longer-term inflation. The rate of inflation reached record highs in 2022.