“The Recession is over” – Obama

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http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,25859401-3122,00.html

PRESIDENT Barack Obama yesterday said the 19-month US recession had reached the “beginning of the end”.

Moving to address public doubts about his big-spending interventions, Mr Obama said the worst was over. His comments came as new Federal Reserve data suggested economic conditions were slowly starting to stabilise.

The President has faced strong criticism from Republicans over his big-spending assault on the worst downturn since the 1930s, which includes his $US787 billion ($A962 billion) stimulus plan, his $US63 billion in loans to GM and Chrysler and the $US700 billion TARP bailout for financial institutions, many of which recently posted healthy profits.

Polls show public opinion is divided over whether the spending spree has helped head off more economic woes.

Speaking at a North Carolina health care rally on Wednesday, Mr Obama referred to a Newsweek cover that read: “Recession is Over”.

He suggested that conclusion was premature, but agreed it had turned a corner.

“We have stopped the free-fall. The market is up and the financial system is no longer on the verge of collapse. That’s true. We’re losing jobs at half the rate we were when I took office six months ago,” he said.

Unemployment, now at 9.5 per cent, has been rising steadily throughout the downturn.

But, Mr Obama said, a run of positive economic data out this week showed the worst was over.

“We just saw home prices rise for the first time in three years. So there’s no doubt that things have gotten better,” he said. “We may be seeing the beginning of the end of the recession.”

The Federal Reserve’s latest “beige book” assessment, out yesterday, showed that industry was hopeful, but not so positive.

Manufacturers were expecting a “modest and uneven recovery” while retailers were preparing for a “long, slow recovery”.

The job market would remain tough for the foreseeable future, however.

“The weakness of labor markets has virtually eliminated upward wage pressure, and wages and compensation are steady or falling in most districts,” the Fed said.

Mr Obama has seen his job approval rating slide in recent weeks as Americans express doubts about his policies.

A new National Public Radio poll put his approval rating at 53 per cent.

The poll found that 45 per cent of those surveyed found that his economic policies helped avert an even worse crisis and were laying the foundation for an eventual recovery, while 48 per cent agreed with the statement that Mr Obama’s policies had run up a record federal deficit while failing to end the recession or slow the record pace of job losses.

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the beginning of the end?..i have heard that before and it wasnt true..i want all of you to remember this in a few months time..when the president told us all the worst is over

now a couple of points from the article:

“The weakness of labor markets has virtually eliminated upward wage pressure, and wages and compensation are steady or falling in most districts,” the Fed said. <– so far the mission is accomplished by the fed..but are they low enough yet?..i dont think so

“We’re losing jobs at half the rate we were when I took office six months ago,” <– that has to be a lie doesnt it?

401

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~ by seeker401 on July 31, 2009.