WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. trade deficit in goods narrowed in February amid a rise in exports, which could temper economists' expectations for a sharp slowdown in economic growth in the first quarter.

The goods trade deficit contracted 4.9% to $147.9 billion last month, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Thursday.

A sharp widening in the goods trade deficit in January as businesses front-loaded imports to get ahead of tariffs had prompted economists to slash their first-quarter gross domestic product estimates to below a 1.5% annualized rate. The economy grew at a 2.4% pace in the fourth quarter.

Goods exports increased $7 billion to $178.6 billion last month, while imports fell $0.6 billion to $326.5 billion.