The US economy grew at an annualised rate of 2% in the July-to-September period, an acceleration on the previous quarter, official figures have shown.

The expansion came despite continuing high unemployment and weakness in the housing market.

The 2% figure is an improvement on the upwardly revised 1.7% increase between April and June, but less than the 3.7% growth recorded from January to March.

The Federal Reserve suggested last week it would do more to boost the economy.To do this, the Fed – the US central bank – is expected to announce next month that it will resume quantitative easing – injecting fresh money into the economy through the purchase of government bonds.

Compared with the preceding quarter, the US economy grew by 0.5% between July and September.

The economy is continuing to experience a slow recovery by historical standards, with the unemployment rate at 9.6% and Americans increasingly nervous about the future.