THE US economy skidded to a near halt in the final quarter of last year, clobbered by dual slumps in housing and credit that caused people and businesses to spend and invest more sparingly.
Gross domestic product grew at an annualised 0.6 per cent in the December quarter, the US Commerce Department reported. The reading - unchanged from a month ago - underscored how much momentum the economy has lost. In the previous quarter, the economy grew at an annualised 4.9 per cent pace.
Gross domestic product measures the value of all goods and services produced in the US and is the best barometer of the country's economic health. "The economy just kept its head above water," said Nigel Gault, an economist at Global Insight.
Economists had been expecting growth of 0.8 per cent. But the housing picture looked even more bleak in the latest report.
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