Forecasters see weak economy, higher unemployment
Published May 19, 2008 by CSBJ Staff
The Associated Press
The good news: The worst of the painful housing slump and the credit crunch might come to an end this year.
The bad news: The economy will weaken further and unemployment will rise.
That’s the latest outlook from forecasters in a survey to be released today by the National Association for Business Economics, also known by its acronym NABE.
More than half the economists surveyed think the economy has started or will enter a recession this year. That’s up from 45 percent in a survey in February. If there is a recession, it probably will be short and shallow, economists said.
Forecasters now predict the economy, which grew by 2.2 percent last year, will slow to 1.4 percent this year. That’s lower than the 1.8 percent growth projected in February. If the new figure proves correct, it would mark the weakest growth since the last recession in 2001.
Next year, the economy should grow by 2.3 percent, less than previously forecast and a pace that is still considered subpar.
Filed under CSBJ Daily, Economics