The American economy is an amazing, complex, flexible, and powerful entity...
The scenario:
Step back to mid-2004. At that time, widespread media frenzy has developed around a highly-regarded psychic...
Given this laundry list of anxiety and negativity, the consensus view of economic forecasters and the media would no doubt be that a serious recession would soon engulf the U.S. economy, with millions of newly unemployed people, rising inflation, huge budget deficits, and little chance of escaping the economic decline. Financial market players would likely be wringing their collective hands about how this combination of challenges would ravage the stock market...
...not exactly
In fact, U.S. economic growth has been solid. The stock market has set dozens of new highs during the past nine months. The combined net worth of American households has set 17 consecutive quarterly records and now stands near $56 trillion. Budget deficits are declining, while inflation remains under control. Labor markets are extremely tight, with widespread opportunities for millions of people who want to work.
The American economy is an amazing, complex, flexible, and powerful entity...
...exactly
Economic futurist Jeff Thredgold is President of Thredgold Economic Associates, a professional speaking and economic consulting company
Since 1976, Jeff's weekly economic and financial newsletter, Tea Leaf, has been helping people make sense of the tangled maze of the U.S. and global economy and financial markets in a light, approachable style. Sign up to receive the free Tea Leaf email newsletter
Jeff is the author of econAmerica: Why the American Economy is Alive and Well...and What That Means to Your Wallet (Wiley, 2007), and On the One Hand...The Economist's Joke Book
His career includes 23 years with $96 billion banking giant KeyCorp, where he served as Senior VP and Chief Economist. He now serves as economic consultant to $50 billion Zions Bancorporation, which has banks in 10 states.