Second-quarter GDP contraction revised to 0.6% from 0.9% Gross domestic income rises at 1.4% rate in Q2 Average of GDP and GDI climbs at 0.4% pace Weekly jobless claims drop 2,000 to 243,000 WASHINGTON, Aug 25 (Reuters) – The U.S. economy contracted at a more moderate pace than initially thought in the second quarter as consumer spending blunted some of the drag from a sharp slowdown in inventory accumulation, dispelling fears that a recession was underway. That was underscored by details of the report from the Commerce Department on Thursday, showing the economy growing steadily last quarter when measured from the income side. The underlying economic strength fits in with recent upbeat readings on the labor market, retail sales and industrial production. “We have had a tremendous recovery, this is a mid-cycle slowdown and not a recession,” said Brian Bethune, an economics professor at Boston College. “Employment is still […]