WASHINGTON, April 27 (Reuters) – The White House called the
rise in U.S. gross domestic product in the first quarter of 2012
“encouraging” but said more growth was needed to get the economy
back on track.
“While the continued expansion of the economy is
encouraging, additional growth is needed to replace the jobs
lost in the deep recession that began at the end of 2007,” Alan
Krueger, chairman of the White House Council of Economic
Advisers, said in a statement.
Aboard Air Force One, White House spokesman Josh Earnest
said that while the 2.2 percent growth rate in the first quarter
showed the U.S. economy was “moving in the right direction,”
President Barack Obama believed “there is more work to do.” The
market had been looking for first-quarter growth between 2.3-2.5
percent, with the consensus forecast at the top of that range.
