Another Recession?

A CNNMoney survey of economists this week pointed to a one-in-three chance of a new recession in the next six months.       It is possible that a recession will be mild this time, lasting less than a year with limited job losses but it could become a serious and deep recession.
The government's final report on second quarter gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic health, showed weak growth of only 1.3% in the three months ending in June. 
The average American is already more bearish than most economists. A CNN/ORC International poll shows 90% of those polled believe current economic conditions are poor.

The last recession caused the U.S. economy to shrink by more than 5%, lasted from December 2007 through June 2009 and was the longest, deepest downturn since the Great Depression.
The recovery that followed has been relatively weak and short. Only once in the past 50 years has a period of expansion lasted less than three years.
This can pose a threat to the economy, since it makes it less likely the labor market will be able to recover the jobs lost during a recession before falling into a new period of job losses.
We've added more than 1 million jobs in the last year, which only happens if we're in a recovery. 

The official word on when recessions begin or end comes from the National Bureau of Economic Research, which has a committee that weighs economic data. But since the committee must wait for final revisions of the data, a call on the start or end of a downturn typically comes a year or more after it actually takes place.

This information is not intended as and should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice.