We continue to get conflicting signals on the recovery and where and how the economy is or is not recovering.

The Bureau of Economic Analysis released its final estimate of U.S. GDP growth on Thursday, the one that will be cited forever more, and it wasn’t good tidings for the U.S. economy.

Real gross domestic product — the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States — increased at an annualized rate of only 1.3 percent during the second quarter, shaving it down from the previous estimated increase of 1.7 percent.

In the first quarter, real GDP increased at an annualized 2 percent, according to the BEA’s final estimate for the period.

The details are many

Positive growth occurred during the second quarter in personal consumption expenditures (people out shopping), exports, and both commercial and residential real estate.

These positives were partly offset by negative factors: private inventory investment was down, and so was state and local government spending. Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased.

Two really big negatives were

The National Association of Realtors said on Thursday that its pending home sales index, which is based on deals inked but not closed, dropped 2.6 percent in August. Compared with August 2011, however, the pending sales index is up 10.7 percent.

New orders for manufactured durable goods decreased $30.1 billion or 13.2 percent in August to $198.5 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau reported on Thursday. This decrease, which follows three consecutive monthly increases, was the largest decrease since January 2009–when pretty much everything was in free fall–and follows a 3.3 percent July increase.