Commerce Secretary Gutierrez Hails 2nd Quarter
Growth Spurt Driven by Booming Record Exports

WASHINGTON—Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez today released the following statement on the preliminary estimate of real gross domestic product (GDP), which showed that the American economy grew at 4.0 percent in the second quarter of 2007:

“This upward revision of four percent to the already strong second quarter economic growth advanced estimate is welcome news. Today we saw a substantial extra contribution to growth from net exports and an additional boost from business investment.

“President Bush believes we should promote an export culture because it will help to create jobs and make America more competitive. We are working to increase U.S. exports to the world by opening markets for American workers and businesses.

“In addition to exports, our underlying economy is strong, despite concerns being worked through in the housing markets. The American economy has been able to withstand many challenges. These 23 straight quarters of economic growth have brought us rising wages and historically low levels of unemployment—lower than the average in each of the past four decades.

“One of the President’s top priorities is to work with Congress to pass pending Free Trade Agreements with Colombia, South Korea, Panama and Peru. When we open markets, we create opportunities for American exporters and increase the competitiveness of our economy. It’s important that we continue to grow our exports, so we can continue to grow our GDP.”