The US economy grew at its fastest pace in more than a year during the second quarter, boosted by international trade, computer sales and business-related construction, the government said Thursday. The world's largest economy grew at an annual rate of 4.0 per cent in April-June, better than previously believed, as the nation's housing slump eased and exports rose, the Commerce Department said. Growth was revised upward from 3.4 per cent and followed an 0.6- per-cent expansion in US gross domestic product in the first quarter. Yet many economists expect the crisis in the US home loan industry to weigh on the economy for the third quarter. On Wall Street, the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was higher after the GDP report. US exports rose 7.6 per cent during the second quarter and imports fell 3.2 per cent, a trend that boosts GDP, the Commerce Department said. Government spending also increased. Private home sales were down 11.6 per cent on the year, compared with a decrease of 16.3 per cent in the first quarter, the report said. The numbers were the government's second GDP estimate for the quarter. Final data are due September 27.
