Recovery Still Slow......‏

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/30/business/economy/us-economy-worse-than-expected-in-second-quarter.html

Recovery Still Slow as New Data Show Little Growth
By CATHERINE RAMPELL
Published: July 29, 2011
WASHINGTON — The United States economy has slowed considerably this year from a year ago (Not like it was booming a year ago), according to a report from the Commerce Department released on Friday.

The country’s gross domestic product, a broad measure of the goods and services produced across the economy, grew at an annual rate of 1.3 percent in the second quarter, after having grown at an annual rate of 0.4 percent in the first quarter — a number that itself was revised sharply down from earlier estimates (They always give a fake numbers to make things seem rosier and then when nobody is paying attention they revise them downward) of 1.7 percent. Data revisions going back to 2003 also showed that the 2007-2009 recession was deeper, and the recovery to date weaker, than originally estimated.

“The word for this report is ‘shocking,’ ” said John Ryding, chief economist at RDQ Economics. “With slow growth, higher inflation (Because of oil prices) , almost no consumer spending growth, it is very tough to find good news.” (The only thing shocking is that this guy thinks any of this is shocking. It is exactly what I said it would be for 11 straight years. It is exactly what it is going to be in the future too. There is nothing shocking about any of it. Send all the jobs overseas and this is what you get. Enjoy it.)

The latest figures come as Congress is debating how to put the nation on a more sustainable fiscal path, with measures that some economists worry could further slow the recovery and even throw the economy back into recession. (We are in recession)

Usually a sharp recession is followed by a sharp recovery, (Usually the jobs aren't all overseas) meaning a recovery growth rate that is far faster than the long-term average growth rate; this time around, (When all the jobs are overseas) though, output is growing at only about a third the average rate seen in the 60 years preceding the Great Recession. As a result, the country’s output is far below its potential. (You don't say....)

Particularly distressing is that consumer spending — which, alongside housing, usually leads the way in a recovery — has been extraordinarily weak in recent quarters. (Unemployed people aren't buying things...Wow that is a mystery) Inflation-adjusted consumer spending in the second quarter barely budged, increasing just 0.1 percent.

“People are spending more (On gas) , but that spending is being absorbed in higher prices (Because of gas) , not in buying more stuff,” said Mr. Ryding.

The economy’s slow growth rate is partly responsible for stubbornly high joblessness across the country. (This is backwards. High unemployment is 100% the cause of the dead US economy. All thanks to corporate America) As of June, 14 million Americans were actively looking for work, and the average duration of unemployment has been reaching record highs month after month. Businesses are sitting on a lot of cash, but are still reluctant to hire (Americans) because there is so much uncertainty about the future of the economy.

Slow economic growth takes not only a human toll, but a fiscal one as well. Tepid output increases mean slow growth in the tax revenue needed to pay down the nation’s debt.
Washington, therefore, has a delicate balancing act in its current debt ceiling debates. Given the unsustainable debt trajectory that the economy is on, Congress needs to impose greater fiscal discipline. (Congress needs to force corporate America to hire Americans. To stop rewarding them for sending the jobs overseas) But imposing too much too soon could be self-defeating by weakening growth so greatly that tax revenue falls and requires the country to borrow even more.

Given inflation concerns, it also seemed unlikely that the Federal Reserve will swoop in with yet more monetary easing (Which failed) to goose growth.

“There’s not going to be additional monetary stimulus (Because it doesn't work) , and it’s hard to imagine any fiscal stimulus given the current discussion in Washington,” said Mr. Ryding. “So what’s going to get us out of this? (Hiring Americans) The inevitable conclusion is time (False), and that’s not very satisfactory.”