Exports of manufactured goods will buoy the U.S. economy as it faces its slowest growth rate in five years, according to the National Association of Manufacturers' October Economic Forecast. The report estimates that economic growth will decelerate from 3.8 percent registered during the second quarter of 2007 to an average annual rate of 2.6 percent over the next three quarters. The weakest housing market in nearly two decades and slow consumer spending are the basis for this downturn. "Exports remain strong and are holding the economy above water," says NAM Chief Economist David Huether. "The improving trade situation is the principal reason the economy is weathering the housing downturn without sinking into recession."