Source: The Canadian Press

The government says the U.S. economy grew at a solid 3.2% pace during the first quarter of this year as consumers boosted their spending by the most in three years.

Today’s report provides more evidence that the recovery remains on track. It marked the third straight quarterly gain as the United States heals from the longest and deepest recession since the 1930s. But that’s weaker than the fourth quarter of last year, when the economy grew at 5.6%.

Consumers increased their spending this quarter at a 3.6% pace, the strongest showing since early 2007.

That marked a big improvement from the fourth quarter when consumer spending grew at just a 1.6% pace.

In Canada, the economy has also been growing rapidly in the last two quarters after the recession. However, the Canadian jobless rate remains at 8.2%, down only half a percentage point from the high last summer.