Today’s second estimate of GDP for the second quarter of 2011 showed that growth was revised down from 1.3 percent to 1.0 percent. BEA revises its GDP estimates frequently, but that’s actually a good thing for policy makers, because revisions incorporate new and better information that becomes available. And that provides a better understanding of what's actually happening in the economy.
Recently, a couple of articles and blogs have criticized BEA’s revisions to GDP, particularly its estimates of GDP during the most recent recession. I understand the frustration. Clearly, the better we understand a problem, the better our solutions will be.