US economy slowed sharply in the fourth quarter, expanding at a rate of just 1.4% | CNN Business

The US economy grew at a much slower pace in the final months of 2025 as the historic government shutdown weighed on economic activity, ending a year that saw the weakest growth since the pandemic.

Still, it was far from the worst-case scenario economists feared when President Donald Trump unveiled his sweeping tariffs last spring. The economy grew in 2025, despite tariffs, an aggressive clampdown on immigration and one of the weakest stretches of job creation since the Great Recession, largely thanks to wealthy consumers who continued to spend.

Gross domestic product,