The economy witnesses a growth in the third quarter for the first time in a year as consumer spending and investment in new home-building rebounded, data showed on Thursday, unofficially ending the worst recession in 70 years.

The commerce department, in its first prediction of third-quarter gross domestic product, said the economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual rate, the fastest pace since the third quarter of 2007, after contracting 0.7 percent in the April-June period.

The growth pace in Gross Domestic Product, which measures total goods and services output within US borders, was above market expectations for a 3.3 percent rate. The economy last grew in the second quarter in the year 2008.

Recessions in the US are dated by the National Bureau of Economic Research and the private-sector group often takes months to make determinations. The economy of the country came under the heat of recession at the end of 2007 and has been in the worst downturn since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

The third-quarter recovery was generally in a broad sense, with solid gains in consumer spending, exports and investment in home-construction.

Consumer spending, which contributes collectively for over two-thirds of US economic activity, surged at a 3.4 percent rate in the third quarter, the fastest advance since the first quarter of 2007. Spending fell at a 0.9 percent rate in the previous quarter.

Residential investment, which was the main reason behind the downturn, reached at a 23.4 percent rate in the third quarter, contributing to GDP for the first time since 2005, after declining 23.3 percent in the April-June period.

The rush in consumer’s expenses and residential investment was likely driven by government stimulus programs.

The financial recovery in the third quarter was also supported by a sharp moderation n the pace of inventory liquidation by business. The business inventories fell $130.8 billion, with a slow rate from a record $160.2 billion plunge in the second quarter. The development in inventories added 0.94 percentage points to real GDP in the third quarter.

Financial analysts are expecting that the slowdown in the inventory decline by businesses will continue to support the economy in the fourth quarter, even as consumer spending is expected to retreat under the weight of the worst labor market in 26 years.

Keeping the inventories aside, GDP rose at a 2.5 percent rate compared to a 0.7 percent increase in the second quarter.

The weak dollar boosted exports, but the increase in imports subtracted from real GDP during the quarter. Federal government spending accounted to growth, but both state and local governments were a drag.

Business investment witnessed a downfall at 2.5 percent pace, with investment nonresidential graphs dropping 9 percent, a reflection of ongoing problems in the commercial property market.