March 29, 2024

U.S. Economy Shows Another Decline, Fanning Recession Fears

Jerome H. Powell, the Fed chairman, acknowledged that the path to avoiding a downturn was “narrowing,” in part because of global forces, including the war in Ukraine and strict pandemic policies in China, that are beyond the central bank’s control.

“When you’re skating on thin ice, you wonder about what it would take to push you through, and we’re on thin ice right now,” said Diane Swonk, the chief economist for KPMG.

Matthew Martin, 32, is paying more for the butter and eggs that go into the intricately decorated sugar cookies he sells as part of a home business. At the same time, his sales are falling.

“I guess people don’t have as much money to toss at cookies right now,” he said.

Mr. Martin, a single father of two, is trying to cut back on spending, but it isn’t easy. He has replaced trips to the movies with day hikes, but that means spending more on gas. He is hoping to sell his house and move into a less expensive place, but finding a house he can afford to buy has proved difficult, especially as mortgage rates have risen. He has thought about finding a conventional 9-to-5 job to pay the bills, but he would then need to pay for child care for his 4-year-old twins.

“Honestly, I’m not 100 percent sure what I’m going to do,” he said.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/business/economy/gdp-q2-economy.html

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