Economists: No Recession on the Horizon

This will be quite a challenge for much of the media to overcome, considering they've seemingly been rooting for an economic collapse, just so they can pin it on George W. Bush. Though of course a new economic dawn will wash over the nation as soon as Barack Obama is inaugurated.

You do realize bad economic news will be forbidden once The Messiah is sworn in, don't you?

Economists have trimmed forecasts for U.S. growth in the second half of this year and in 2009, but more have come to the view that the United States will dodge a recession, a survey released on Tuesday showed.

Blue Chip Economic Indicators, a monthly newsletter, said 53.5 percent of the 48 private economists surveyed for its June issue do not believe the U.S. economy is in or will enter a recession in 2008, up from 40 percent in the May survey.

"The consensus now suggests the downturn in economic growth will be less steep than earlier feared, but the subsequent recovery in growth to its trend rate will take longer than hoped a few months ago," the newsletter said.

The economists polled on June 2 and 3 projected third-quarter growth at a 1.5 percent annual rate, down from the 1.7 percent pace forecast a month ago. For the fourth quarter, they said the economy would likely expand by 1.2 percent, down from the 1.5 percent projected a month ago.

Things are by no means rosy and I suggest the projected growth rates may be low. But at least things aren't as dire as the gloom-and-doomers make it out to be, high energy and oil prices notwithstanding.