The US economy is expected to contract by 1.3% in the first quarter of 2018 as companies slash jobs and the dollar loses value, according to a report released on Wednesday.
The Commerce Department’s monthly GDP report on Wednesday shows the economy contracted by 1% in January and February compared to a revised estimate of 1.1% that was earlier reported.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected GDP to contract 0.3%.
The economy is now projected to grow at a 2.5% annual rate this year, slightly lower than a forecast of 3.1%.
“The slowdown in economic growth will likely hurt the U.S. dollar as the U