The U.S. economic growth rate was downwardly revised to an annual rate of 1 percent in the second quarter of this year from the previous estimate of 1.3 percent, the Commerce Department said on Friday.
Weaker growth in business inventories, waning exports and declining spending from state and local governments contributed to the slower pace of economic growth from April to June.
The feeble economic growth came after the country's real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by an anemic 0.4 percent in the first quarter.
The GDP report was released before U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's key policy speech scheduled to be delivered later in the day.
Real personal consumption expenditures edged up a meager 0.4 percent in the second quarter, compared with an increase of 2.1 percent in the first quarter.
Personal consumption accounts for around 70 percent of U.S. economic activity, and is the major engine of the economic growth.
Real exports of goods and services gained 3.1 percent in the second quarter, compared with an increase of 7.9 percent in the first quarter. Real imports of goods and services rose 1.9 percent, compared with an increase of 8.3 percent in the first one.
Against the backdrop of government spending cuts, real state and local government consumption expenditures and gross investment fell 2.8 percent, compared with a decrease of 3.4 percent in the first one.
Some experts worried that the weak U.S. economic growth might further dampen the confidence of inventors and consumers./.