US President Donald Trump preempted the official release of GDP figures on Friday, saying that a record-long government shutdown last year had slowed growth by at least two points.
The US Department of Commerce is set to release the fourth quarter and 2025 full-year growth estimates at 8:30 am (1330GMT), with analysts expecting the shutdown late last year to have temporarily weighed on growth.
Senior government officials including the president are often briefed on the economic data before its official release, but it is highly unusual for them to comment on the embargoed information.
"The Democrat Shutdown cost the U.S.A. at least two points in GDP. That's why they are doing it, in mini form, again," Trump wrote on Truth Social about a half-hour before the Commerce Department's release.
The entire federal government faced a funding lapse last year from October 1 to November 12, the longest in US history.
A new shutdown began last week, but only impacting the Department of Homeland Security.
