The U.S. economy continued to grow in early 2010, fueled by consumers, the Commerce Department said Friday, but the slowing pace raised concerns about the expansion's strength going forward.

GDP rose at a 3.2% annual rate in Q1, the third straight quarterly advance after a long, deep recession. But that's down from the 5.6% pace in Q4 and just missed Wall Street views for a 3.3% gain.

The economy could slow further in the second half of 2010 as stimulus and inventory building wane and consumers remain too weak to power a strong recovery quarter after quarter, analysts predict.

WASHINGTON – The numbers would be excellent in normal times, but for a country recovering from deep recession, they're not enough.

Spending by consumers rose by the fastest pace in three years, helping the economy grow at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in the first quarter of the year, the Commerce Department said Friday. It marked the third straight quarterly gain as the nation heals from the longest and deepest recession since the 1930s.

TOKYO – Japan received a brighter assessment of its economic future Friday, with a key central bank report highlighting an accelerating recovery and easing price declines.

In its semiannual outlook, the Bank of Japan predicted that the world's second biggest economy would see faster growth this fiscal year, which began April 1, and a possible end to deflation within two years. Gross domestic product will probably expand 1.8 percent this year, the central bank said, better than its previous forecast of 1.3 percent.

NEW YORK – Stocks are falling after the government said the economy grew at a slightly slower-than expected pace in the first quarter.

A drop in consumer sentiment contributed to the selling Friday.

Gross domestic product rose at a 3.2 percent annual pace in the January-March period. That's below the 3.4 percent rate economists had forecast.

WASHINGTON – The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits dropped for a second consecutive week, further evidence that the job market is slowly improving.

The Labor Department said Thursday that initial applications for jobless benefits dropped by 11,000 to 448,000, the lowest level in four weeks. The new total was slightly higher than economists had expected.

PHILADELPHIA – Consumers signing up for digital cable TV and high-speed Internet services led to a 12 percent increase in first-quarter profit for Comcast Corp. The company also said advertising on its cable channels rebounded in the quarter, indicating that an economic upturn is taking hold.

The nation's largest cable TV provider still sounded cautious notes Wednesday. It said that its growth could be hampered in future quarters because the jobless rate remains high and the housing market still is under duress. Such factors could lead fewer people to sign up for service.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Countries must not be complacent about the state of the global economy, despite brighter signs of recovery, Japanese Finance Minister Naoto Kan on Saturday warned his counterparts at the International Monetary Fund.

Huge public debt in developed countries and surging capital inflows to emerging economies could disrupt growth, Kan said.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – The high U.S. jobless rate and low inflation mean the Federal Reserve will likely keep its near-zero interest-rate policy in place for quite some time, a top Fed official said on Monday.

The U.S. central bank's policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is due next week to reconsider its pledge to keep rates low for an "extended period," a vow it has had in place since it cut its key short-term interest rate target to near zero in December 2008.

INDIANAPOLIS – Indiana's unemployment rate remained nearly unchanged for the sixth straight month as it increased slightly to 9.9 percent for March.

Figures released Friday by the state Department of Workforce Development show the jobless rate rose by 0.1 percentage point from February's 9.8 percent. The agency says the state's total number of jobs grew by 16,600, but that the number of those seeking jobs grew faster as about 330,000 people were unemployed in March.

DENVER – Labor officials say Colorado experienced its first year over year drop in the number of job seekers since October 2007 with 209,800 people looking for work last month, compared with 211,700 in March 2009.

Labor officials say the jobless rate in March was 7.9 percent, up from February's 7.7 percent. Executive director of the state's Department of Labor and Employment Donald Mares says an improving economy encouraging more people to enter the work force contributed to the unemployment rate.