The economy grew at an annual rate of 2.4% in the second quarter, according to data released by the Commerce Department this morning.  That is a slowdown from the 3.7% growth rate during the first quarter (this is a revised rate, as the Commerce Department had previously put the growth of GDP for the first quarter at 2.7%).  While the growth is smaller than many expected, it does represent the fourth straight quarter that real GDP rose.  Here's a look at the trend, from the Bureau of Economic Analysis:

And some explanation as to what drove the growth, and what held further growth back:

The increase in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from nonresidential fixed investment, exports, personal consumption expenditures, private inventory investment, federal government spending, and residential fixed investment.  Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased. 

The deceleration in real GDP in the second quarter primarily reflected an acceleration in imports and a deceleration in private inventory investment that were partly offset by an upturn in residential fixed investment, an acceleration in nonresidential fixed investment, an upturn in state and local government spending, and an acceleration in federal government spending. 

Read the release here.