Initially, the government measured second-quarter growth at 2.5 percent.

The second-quarter growth was the lowest since the final quarter of 1986, when the economy grew by 2.3 percent, department officials said.

But interest rates rose only slightly, probably because inflation remained in check despite the strong second-quarter growth.

The Commerce Department this morning releases the first report on second-quarter economic growth.

That is when data on second-quarter economic growth will be released.

And the first estimate of second-quarter economic growth is expected on Friday.

And the boost to consumption provided by the retail sales numbers suggests that second-quarter growth should be around 2 percent or perhaps a bit higher.

As a result, the retail sales report suggested the likelihood of a significant slowdown in second-quarter economic growth.

Last month the drought was said to have cut second-quarter growth by a percentage point and that the total loss would be $14.3 billion.

Many analysts had expected second-quarter growth of 9.3% to 9.5%.