Bush says economy slowing but it's resilient

TORRANCE, California (Reuters) - President George W. Bush said on Wednesday the economy was slowing but it was resilient.

"There's signs that our economy is slowing. There's some uncertainty in the economy," Bush said during a visit to a helicopter factory in California. "But in the long run, you've got to be confident about your economy."

"Our economy is flexible, it is resilient. We've been through problems before," he added.

The Commerce Department reported earlier that U.S. gross domestic product in the fourth quarter grew at a meager annual rate of 0.6 percent. That reading was weaker than the 1.2 percent rate forecast by private economists.

(Reporting by Caren Bohan; Editing by James Dalgleish)