U.S. GDP declines 0.3% as imports surged ahead of Trump's tariffs

The U.S. economy contracted 0.3% in the first quarter of 2025, the first negative reading since the COVID pandemic, according to an initial measurement by the Commerce Department. The decline was fueled by a massive surge in imports. Consumer spending, meanwhile, climbed 1.8%, the weakest pace since mid-2023, NBC News reports. Watch NBC Bay Area News free wherever you are WATCH HERE Economists were expecting gross domestic product (GDP) to have advanced 0.4% for the first three months of 2025, c