The economy grew at an inflation-adjusted 1.5% annual rate in the second quarter, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a preliminary estimate of GDP that also indicated that consumer spending and artificial intelligence investment are keeping commerce steady.

The reading, the first of three estimates for second-quarter GDP, indicates that economic growth slowed from the first quarter of this year, which clocked a 2.1% GDP growth rate, adjusted for seasonal variations. But it is an increase from the fourth quarter of last year, which saw anemic 0.5% growth.