Hopes of US interest rate rises were pushed into the distance on Friday, as figures showed that the world’s largest economy had slowed sharply and was near stagnation for almost a year.
The US economy grew by just 0.3pc in the three month period to the end of June, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Economists had anticipated that the US economy would expand at more than twice this pace. On an annualised basis, growth was 1.2pc, which was also well below forecasts.