Economy Grew 1% in First Quarter

The economy grew 1% in the first quarter, as the government's final reading on gross domestic product for the first three months of the year came in as expected.

Real gross domestic product, the measure of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the U.S., jumped from 0.6% in the fourth quarter. It was slightly higher than the 0.9% the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported in its second, or preliminary, reading last month.

Economists had expected 1% growth.

The economy's growth comes with the backdrop of sputtering stocks, as all lines of business grapple with a stubborn credit crisis that has choked markets since last summer.

The Federal Reserve's Federal Open Markets Committee on Wednesday held its key interest rate target steady at 2%, resisting the urge to raise rates in the face of rising inflation concerns for fear of stagnant economic growth.