Washington, Aug 27 (DPA) The US economy shrank 1 per cent in the second quarter of the year, a sign that the recession slowed dramatically, according to a government estimate Thursday that was unchanged from its original prediction made last month.

The Commerce Department's second estimate of gross domestic product (GDP) was better than economists had expected, according to a survey by Bloomberg News, and compares with a massive 6.4 percent contraction in the first three months of the year.

Company profits surged 5.7 per cent from the first quarter, the sharpest gain since the first three months of 2005. Smaller drops in consumer spending and exports and an uptick in government spending all helped ease the recession in the April-June period.

The US is already in its worst recession since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Most economists expect it to end in the coming months.

The Commerce Department figures released Thursday marked the second of three estimates of second-quarter GDP.