Overview

America's Bureau of Economic Analysis lowered its estimate of first-quarter GDP growth from an annual rate of 2.0% to 1.3%. The sharpest inventory reduction since 1983 made the downward revision bigger than expected. On the plus side, the Conference Board reported a rebound in its index of consumer confidence. Year-on-year growth in retail sales also climbed, to 2.5% in April. A profit warning from Sun Microsystems tipped the balance on the country's stockmarkets, however; the Nasdaq shed 7.1%.