Economy dips at 0.7 percent pace in 2Q

The economy shrank less than expected in the second quarter as businesses and consumers trimmed their spending at a slower pace, buttressing beliefs that the economy is now growing.

The 0.7 percent dip in gross domestic product for the April-June quarter follows the 6.4 percent annualized drop in the first three months of this year, the worst slide in nearly three decades. In the final quarter of last year, the economy sank at a rate of 5.4 percent

The new reading on second-quarter GDP, reported by the Commerce Department on Wednesday, shows the economy shrinking less than the 1 percent pace previously estimated. It also was better than the annualized 1.1 …