Press Release

Statement by Secretary Gutierrez on Third Quarter GDP

WASHINGTON—U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez today released the following statement on the preliminary estimate of real gross domestic product (GDP), which showed that the U.S. economy decreased at an annual rate of 0.5 percent in the third quarter of 2008:

“Today’s GDP report reaffirms the serious challenges in our economy. We are in the midst of global financial turmoil. Americans are worried about their job security, their home values, their savings and retirement accounts, and their ability to get loans to pay for college education or cars. The administration has taken important steps to restore confidence in our financial systems, but it will take some time for the economy to bounce back. America must not abandon pro-growth policies of lower taxes and open markets for products made by U.S. workers.

“Congress is expected to come back to Washington next week. We continue to call for Congress to pass the pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea. In the 735 days since the Colombian agreement was signed, more than $1.3 billion in tariffs have been imposed on U.S. exports to Colombia. As exports continue to be the bright spot of our economy, this is one way Congress can quickly work to stimulate growth.”