The U.S. economy surged in the 2nd quarter of 2018 with growth surging to a 4.1 percent pace according to a report from the Commerce Department. That's nearly double the first quarter rate of 2.2 percent in 2018 and the strongest pace of growth since 2014.
During remarks at the White House Friday morning, Trump hailed the GDP report.
"We've accomplished an economic turnaround of historic proportions," Trump said. "Once again, we are the economic envy of the entire world."
The president called the 4.1 percent growth "amazing" saying, "As the trade deals come in one by one, we're going to go a lot higher than these numbers, and these are great numbers."
The growth was thanks to a 4-percent growth in consumer spending along with a 13.3 surge in goods exports in the 2nd quarter. That's the fastest since the 5.2 percent rate in the third quarter of 2014.
Trump said this morning that as new trade deals are negotiated, Americans will see the pace of the economy go even higher, calling the numbers "very sustainable."
"The trade deficit, very dear to my heart because we've been ripped off by the world, has dropped off by more than $50 billion," Trump said Friday.
The president also championed the tax plan passed by the GOP last year saying that "as a result, more than 6 million Americans are enjoying new bonuses, better jobs, and far better paychecks."
Trump also compared the economy's performance under his presidency to those of Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
"During each of two previous administrations, we averaged just over 1.8 percent GDP growth. By contrast, we are now on track to hit an average GDP annual growth of over 3 percent, and it could be substantially over 3 percent," Trump said. "Each point, by the way, means approximately $3 trillion and 10 million jobs."
The Obama administration experienced eight quarters of growth better than 3 percent or higher, including three times it was 4 percent or better. The highest growth during his presidency during the third quarter of 2014 when growth hit 5.2 percent.
However, it's unclear whether the accelerating growth has resulted in increased wages. According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, personal income growth has decelerated in the second quarter, despite the GDP increase. Government data from the last few years shows that wages have remained stagnant.
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