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Is there a single value of GDP growth that the Bureau of Economic Analysis calculates each quarter?

By EconoFact
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NO

The Bureau of Economic Analysis’ headline announcement of real GDP growth (the change in national income net of price changes) each quarter represents what would happen to GDP if growth continued at the pace from the previous quarter for a full year. Alternatively, GDP growth can be calculated as a percent change from the same quarter the previous year (e.g. Q4/Q4), or as a percent change in the average GDP level between two consecutive years (Y/Y). These different approaches can provide very different results, particularly during periods of large and rapid change in economic activity, like during the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, the BEA reported an annualized decline in real GDP of 31.4% in the second quarter of 2020 and an increase in real GDP of 33% in the third quarter, but the Q2/Q2 change was -9.0% and -2.8% for Q3/Q3.

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EconoFact How Should We Think About 2020 GDP Growth?
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EconoFact is a non-partisan publication designed to bring key facts and incisive analysis to the national debate on economic and social policies. Launched in January 2017, it is written by leading academic economists from across the country who belong to the EconoFact Network. It is published by the Edward R. Murrow Center for a Digital World at The Fletcher School at Tufts University.
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