WASHINGTON?The US economy grew at a weaker-than-expected 2.7 percent rate in the first quarter, a third and final revision from the US Commerce Department showed Friday.

The estimate was the second downward revision of gross domestic product growth for the January-March period, which was initially calculated at 3.2 percent before being adjusted down to 3.0 percent in late May.

The final reading was lower than the average analyst forecast of 3.0 percent, but it marked the third consecutive quarter of growth for the US economy after it emerged from the country's worst recession since the Second World War.

In a statement, the Commerce Department said that the final figure reflected "an upward revision to imports and a downward revision to personal consumption expenditures that were partly offset by upward revisions to exports and to private inventory investment."

The rate of growth was well below the pace of the final quarter of 2009, when GDP was estimated at 5.6 percent, the strongest growth in six years.

Driving the first quarter final figure down was a revision of growth in consumer spending to 3.0 percent from a previous estimate of 3.5 percent.

But the weaker figure was still the highest personal expenditure level since the first quarter of 2007, and accounted for more than three quarters of GDP growth for the period from January to March.

Weak state and local government spending and an increase in imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, also pushed the growth figure down.

Analysts at Briefing.com said the final figure was "disappointing," adding that "the negative revision was unexpected."

But, "the fact that GDP remained near its potential 2.8 percent long-term growth rate will not alter our view about the stability of the economic recovery," they wrote.

"Since the revisions lag the current data by two months, and the changes were relatively minimal, we do not expect the market to have much reaction to the news."

The revision was released as the leaders of the Group of 20 prepared to meet in Toronto, with the need to protect the global economic recovery expected to be high on the agenda.

On Friday morning, US President Barack Obama called on participants to coordinate efforts "to promote economic growth, to pursue financial reform and to strengthen the global economy."

"We need to act in concert for a simple reason: This crisis proved, and event continue to affirm, that our national economies are inextricably linked."