Economy upbeat in 3rd quarter

The U.S. economy grew at +2.7% in the third quarter. This is much better than the 2% that had been estimated. It is also twice the 1.3% rate of the second (April-June) quarter. Business inventory growth, coupled with stronger exports, helped offset weaker consumer spending. Economists agree that if congress gets us past the "fiscal cliff", we could see continuing growth throughout 2013.