The initial estimate for the quarter ended 6/30/2022 is that the economy contracted for the second consecutive quarter.
This is a major news story because two consecutive quarters of contraction has typically been the rule of thumb for the big “R” word: recession.
GDP contracted 1.6% in the first quarter and 0.9% in the second quarter.
Although, the body responsible for officially declaring recessions, the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), does not use two consecutive quarters in its technical definition. It considers a variety of other factors so we cannot say for certain that we are in a recession yet. Continue reading “Are We In A Recession?”