US GDP growth at 1.4%, misses expectations as Trump blames shutdown

US economic growth cooled more than expected in the final months of 2025, government estimates showed Friday, capping the first year of Donald Trump's return to the presidency.

The world's biggest economy expanded at a 1.4 percent annual rate in the October to December period last year, the Department of Commerce said.

This was significantly below the 2.5 percent pace that analysts had forecasted for the quarter.


Full-year GDP growth, in turn, came in at 2.2 percent in 2025.

Trump was quick to blame a lengthy government shutdown last year for the deceleration in growth, pinning the responsibility on Democratic lawmakers in a Truth Social post right before the latest data was released.

"The Democrat Shutdown cost the U.S.A. at least two points in GDP," Trump wrote.

Analysts generally expect any hit to economic growth from the shutdown between October to mid-November to be temporary.

On Friday, the Commerce Department said that the slower fourth quarter growth "reflected downturns in government spending and exports and a deceleration in consumer spending."

This was partially offset by a pick-up in investments, the report added.

bys/des