U.S. real gross domestic product grew at an annual rate of 1.8 percent in the first quarter, according to an advance estimate released today by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The first quarter's growth is slower than that of the fourth quarter, when real GDP grew by 3.1 percent.

It had grown by 2.6 percent in the third-quarter of 2010.

The deceleration in real GDP in the first quarter primarily reflected a sharp upturn in imports, a deceleration in personal consumption expenditures, a larger decrease in federal government spending, and decelerations in nonresidential fixed investment and in exports that were partly offset by a sharp upturn in private inventory investment.

Staffing industry growth — with the exception of healthcare staffing — correlates with growth in GDP, according to research from Staffing Industry Analysts. Staffing industry revenue tends to grow faster as GDP improves.