Real US gross domestic product (GDP) increased at 5.7 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2009 after increasing 2.2 percent in the third quarter, according to estimates released today by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

GDP has gone up two straight quarters, rising 2.2 percent in the third quarter after a year of contraction. In all of 2009, GDP fell 2.4 percent, the biggest drop for an entire year since 10.9% in 1946.

Average GDP growth in the first two quarters after the recession came in above 4 percent, topping the average 2.3 percent seen after the past two recessions, according to IHS Global Insight.

Fourth-quarter GDP highlights: The pick up in real GDP growth reflected a slowdown in the rate at which businesses drew down inventories; while inventories were drawn down for the seventh straight quarter, the drawdown was much less than in the third quarter.

The pick up also reflected a upturn in business investment, mainly due to a pick up in equipment and software. In addition, imports (a subtraction in the calculation of GDP) rose less than in the third quarter.

These contributions to real GDP growth were partially offset by slowdowns in federal spending, consumer spending, and residential housing.

 Real exports of goods and services increased 18.1 percent in the fourth quarter, compared with an increase of 17.8 percent in the third.  Real imports of goods and services increased 10.5 percent, compared with an increase of 21.3 percent.

The change in real private inventories added 3.39 percentage points to the fourth-quarter change in real GDP after adding 0.69 percentage point to the third-quarter change.  Private businesses decreased inventories $33.5 billion in the fourth quarter, following decreases of $139.2 billion in the third quarter and $160.2 billion in the second.

Prices

Prices of goods and services purchased by U.S. residents rose 2.1 percent after rising 1.3 percent in the third quarter. Although energy prices slowed, food prices turned up. Excluding food and energy, prices rose 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter after rising 0.3 percent in the third quarter.

Personal income and personal saving

Real disposable personal income, income adjusted for inflation and taxes, rose 2.1 percent in the fourth quarter after falling 1.4 percent in the third quarter. The personal saving rate, saving as a percent of disposable personal income, rose to 4.6 percent from 4.5 percent.
2009 GDP highlights

Real GDP in 2009 declined 2.4 percent. In 2008, growth was 0.4 percent. The downturn in 2009 reflected downturns in business investment and exports and larger declines in inventory investment and consumer spending.

Parsing today's GDP report, with Ethan Harris, of Merrill Lynch Global Research; Jason Trennert, of Strategas Research; and the CNBC news team: