President Donald Trump preemptively commented on fourth-quarter GDP data via social media before the official Bureau of Economic Analysis release, suggesting Democratic actions had reduced growth by two percentage points. The GDP data showed the US economy grew at an annualized rate of 1.4% in Q4 2025, falling well below the 2.8% consensus estimate and marking a sharp slowdown from the 4.4% growth in the previous quarter.

Trump's post came at 7:50 a.m., just 40 minutes before the scheduled 8:30 a.m. release, raising questions about the appropriateness of commenting on market-moving data. The US government shutdown, which lasted nearly half of the three-month period, subtracted approximately 1 percentage point from GDP growth, according to the BEA. For the full year, the US economy expanded 2.2%, based on the government's initial estimate.

The weak economic performance was driven by slower consumer spending and trade, with the S&P 500 declining 0.25% following the data release alongside personal income and spending figures. This marks the second time Trump has commented on sensitive economic data before official publication, following a similar incident in April 2025 when his Truth Social post preceded a market-moving tariff announcement.