Workers remove pieces of scaffolding on the Washington Monument after repairing the damage caused by the earthquake in 2011 in Washington D.C., capital of the United States, Dec. 5, 2013. The U.S. economy increased at an annual rate of 3.6 percent in the third quarter before the 16-day partial government shutdown, boosted by private inventories and residential fixed investment, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Thursday. (Xinhua/Zhang Jun) |