Strong Economic Growth In Q1 But Slowing In Q2…. The most recent estimate for GDP growth in the first quarter of 2019 was quite strong at 3.1%, up from 2.2% in the fourth quarter of 2018.  Much of the GDP growth in Q1 was from a buildup of inventories and net export of goods. Many have speculated that the buildup of inventories was related to the prospect of the tariff increases that have made headlines in the past several months. If that was the case then a reduction of inventory should have a negative impact on growth in future quarters.  […]