U.S. ECONOMY LIMPING ALONG …
|| By FITSNEWS || The big economic news this week was obviously the thud-worthy first quarter growth estimate from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). According to the government, the economy grew at an anemic 0.2 percent rate from January to March.
And that growth was due almost exclusively to rising energy costs … oh, and Obamacare.
That number came on the heels of a big manufacturing miss, slumping consumer confidence and of course anemic job growth.
Which is probably why economic growth for the second quarter of 2015 – which runs from April through June – isn’t looking so hot either.
According to the Atlanta Federal Reserve’s “GDP Now” tracking tool, the current estimate of economic growth for the second quarter clocked in at 0.9 percent.
Assuming that holds (and the Atlanta Fed’s first quarter estimates plummeted over time), we are looking at a best case scenario of 0.5 percent economic growth for the first half of 2015 – well below what the “rainbows and unicorns” crowd promised.
As we noted in our coverage of the abysmal first quarter data, “current lack of growth is part of an increasingly worsening broader downturn.”
The U.S. economy hasn’t expanded at an annual rate of three percent in ten years. It hasn’t achieved four percent growth in fifteen years. And it hasn’t hit five percent growth in more than thirty years. Of course growth exceeded five percent in twelve out of thirty years from 1950-1980. And it exceeded four percent in seventeen out of those thirty years.
You know … before the era of obscenely big government commenced.
Insert our boilerplate warning …
Until our leaders reverse course and engage the free market – not more wealth redistribution, crony capitalism, welfare statism and global interventionism – don’t expect anything to change. In fact expect things to get worse.
In fact don’t look now but … they are.
15 comments
Guess you all missed the disclaimer so I’ll add it for you since we’re all of 30 days into the new quarter:
As more monthly source data becomes available, the GDPNow forecast for a particular quarter evolves and generally becomes more accurate. That said, the forecasting error can still be substantial just prior to the “advance” GDP estimate release. It is important to emphasize that the Atlanta Fed GDPNow forecast is a model projection not subject to judgmental adjustments. It is not an official forecast of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, its president, the Federal Reserve System, or the FOMC.
I still like the line HD posted about Will’s ZeroHedge / gloom-and-doom obsession:
He’s accurately predicted 200 of the last 2 recessions…
Then he’s got a record of 100% when it comes to predicting recessions. Can’t be much more perfect than that.
Sure…or 1%.
Obamanomics is working.
A hell of a lot better than the economics of his predecessor. Economy was losing 500K jobs a month when Obama became President. This week unemployment benefit claims fell to a 15 year low, and the economy is adding 200k +- jobs a month.
Reaganomics was designed to screw the country over the long haul. Bush decided to play the same game, only faster and dumber.
Google search “Jerry Brown flat tax”. :~}
Do you get paid to post that?
Do you get paid to post that?Do you get paid to post that?”
Do you get paid to post that?
Gruberment employee Jack, fur sure.
LOL
Do you get paid to post that?Obamanomics is working”
Do you get paid to post that?
“Second verse, same as the first!” …
First the good news. There isn’t any there, there.
Now the bad news. There isn’t any there, there.
Ain’t ever gonna get anywhere or more better unless and until the entire federally Gruberized IRS tax code is trash canned and a uniform low income tax code is substituted.
The whole of government, fed, state and local, has been so twisted, contorted and abused by special interests to the point of malicious intent and malicious prosecution. … Duh!
Snooze flash: George Soros (benefactor of lib causes like moveon.gov) apparently owns Several Billion$ in back taxes, too. Add to the IOG’ment mix, motor city mouth Sharpton, Billary and a growing liberal list …
Guess who’s in favor of Jerry Brown’s Flat Tax now? (Google it)