The Economy: A Sluggish Start to the Year

After ringing out 1984 with an ebullient growth spurt, the U.S. economy seems to have sobered up considerably at the start of 1985. The Commerce Department projected last week that the gross national product in the first quarter of the year will grow at a sluggish annual rate of 2.1%, less than half the 4.3% clip of the previous three months. The news about inflation, however, was less discouraging. Consumer prices rose in February at an annual rate of 4.2%, about the same moderate pace as in 1984.

A prime cause of the economic slowdown was the continuing flood of imports....