U.S. Economy in Technical Recession After Growth Fell 0.9% in Second Quarter

The U.S. economy shrank for the second consecutive quarter, the traditional definition of a recession.


Summary

The U.S. economy shrank for the second consecutive quarter, the traditional definition of a recession. Growth fell 0.9% in the spring amid surging inflation and rising interest rates.

  • The economic decline stemmed from factors including, “decreases in inventories, residential and nonresidential investment, and government spending at the federal, state and local levels.”
  • The stock market declined slightly in the wake of the GDP report, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average sinking by 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite Index down by 0.7%.
  • The economy shrank by 1.6% in the first quarter. The new GDP report came one day after the Federal Reserve again raised the benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a point to try and break the inflation raging through the U.S. economy.
  • Even as the economy contracted, job growth averaged 456,700 per month in the first half of 2022 and jobless claims remain relatively low.

 

reporting from the left side of the aisle

 

  • The New York Times wrote the new data is “fueling fears that a recession may have already begun” while claiming, “Most economists still don’t think the economy meets the formal definition of a recession, which is based on a broader set of indicators including measures of income, spending, and employment.”
  • The Washington Post observed the contraction comes as “Retailers bought fewer items, including cars,” and “consumers shifted their spending away from goods to services such as restaurants and hotels.”
  • CNN called the economic news a “symbolic recession threshold” and noted the administration even published an “explainer” claiming the traditional definition of a recession does not constitute a recession.

 

 

  • FOX News said the economic data put the U.S. into a “technical recession” while noting that relatively strong unemployment and consumer spending indicators make that determination more complex than previous economic declines like the Great Recession.
  • Breitbart called the economic contraction the “Bidenpression” and noted that many economists will hesitate to call this a recession until the National Bureau of Economic Research makes a determination using “a more complex and subjective definition of recessions” in the coming months.
  • National Review argued “the White House can’t weasel its way out of a recession” and the administration’s efforts to downplay the sour economic news as “not just dishonest but genuinely stupid.” Author Kevin Williamson asked, “When is a recession not a recession? When it is bad for Democratic incumbents.”

On Your Radar

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The Russian arms dealer at the center of a proposed swap for Brittney Griner has a notorious history. (New York Times)

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© Dominic Moore, 2022