Report: Mass. Economy Slowed In 2010's Final Quarter

A new report finds that Massachusetts' economy slowed "significantly" in the final quarter of last year.

The report by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston and the University of Massachusetts says the economy grew just 1.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010.

Economist Alan Clayton-Matthews, of Northeastern University, says that's likely just a brief slowdown after a stretch of stronger growth.

"It's as if it were catching its breath to again move ahead forward at a faster pace," he said. "And the leading index suggests that growth in the first half of this year will be at a 3 percent rate."

He says the earlier stronger growth was a result of a sharp rebound in the technology sector.

"That growth couldn't be sustained," Clayton-Matthews said. "One reason is because technology markets have now reached where they were before the recession and output is even above pre-recession levels in many markets."

Last quarter was the first time in more than a year that the national economy grew faster than the state economy.