As the U.S. celebrates its 250th birthday, here are eight economic reasons to light up the sky. Sturdy economy: Growing 2.7% in the past year to Q1, U.S. real GDP is not only the strongest since 2024, it is also vastly outperforming its long-run potential and every other G7 nation. Accelerating productivity: Underpinning both near- and long-term economic growth, labour productivity among nonfarm businesses rose 2.8% in the past year to Q1, the most since 2024 and well above the half-century average of 1.9%. Surging investment in all things AI: A key productivity driver is business investment, particularly in ... (full story)