The American economy rose at a revised 3.3% annual rate in the second quarter, up from an earlier estimate of 3.1% according to the U.S. the Commerce Department. Economists expected no change in the growth rate.

“The slightly higher growth rate was due to stronger inventory building (revised to -17.6 billion from -20.9 billion), higher residential investment (up 6.6% from 4.5%) as well as slightly stronger government spending (up 8.5% from 8.2%),” explains RBC Financial.

“The deficit in net exports was revised up just slightly due to imports that were a little higher than originally reported. Meanwhile, second quarter profits from current production were revised down a bit, but nonetheless posted a strong increase at 9.9% from the first quarter, the third straight quarterly gain.”

“While growth appears to be marginally stronger in the second quarter than originally thought, the drivers of that growth have not changed appreciably,” RBC says. “Consumers and governments were spending, business investment was improving while net trade and inventories were the only drags on growth.”

RBC says that with both expansionary fiscal and monetary policies in place, and a lower dollar, the U.S. economy should continue on the path to recovery. It predicts that it could achieve back-to-back growth rates of about 5% in the third and fourth quarter of this year.

“This is good news for a world economy banking on a U.S. recovery to lead it out of its lethargy,” it says. “Still, in order for the U.S. to take this leading role, its recovery must be a sustainable one and the major risk still lingering over the economic horizon is that lack of any momentum in the job market.”