Monday, September 20, 2010

Recession ended last year - I feel lucky


The NBER announced today that the recession ended in June of last year. This was the longest and deepest recession since the Great Depression at 18 months and 4.1 percent of GDP. The poor rebound in payrolls is he reason for the longer than usual lag in announcing the end. The NBER committee waited until the national accounts were revised.

So we have been in recovery for over a year. It does not feel like it. Of course, we still not have exceeded our old peak of December 2007. The economy is still a little over 1% below the previous high. Interestingly, the stimulus from the Federal government did not take effect until after the end of the recession. If we slowdown again, it would officially be a double dip.

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