The US Commerce Department has confirmed that economic growth in the United States slowed in the first three months of 2011 to an annualised rate of 1.8%, which is a 0.4% quarterly rise.
The BBC reports this compares with an annualised growth rate of 3.1% in the final three months of 2010.
The slowdown was blamed on corporate profits unexpectedly contracting for the first time in more than two years.
Many analysts had expected the growth figure to be revised upwards to about 2%.
US GDP is expressed as an annualised rate, or annual pace, which shows what three months economic activity would mean if it carried on for a year.
Growth in consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US GDP, was revised down from 2.7% to 2.2%.
The BBC reports that was balanced by an upward revision to the amount of money businesses were spending on restocking, which was increased from $US43.8 billion to $US52.2 billion.
