Notice how the economy has been "slipping" into a recession for the last year. Newsflash MSM dunderheads: The economy's fallen and it can't get up!:dunce:
from AP, via Yahoo!:
Index suggests economy weakening By EILEEN ALT POWELL, AP Business Writer
30 minutes ago
NEW YORK - A gauge of future economic activity dropped in February for the fifth consecutive month, suggesting that the weakening U.S economy could, indeed, be slipping into recession.
The Conference Board said Thursday that its index of leading economic indicators fell 0.3 percent last month to 135.0 after dipping a revised 0.4 percent in January.
The February reading was in line with the 0.3 percent decline expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/IFR.
The index is designed to forecast where the nation's economy is headed in the next three to six months.
Many economists believe rising gas prices, falling home prices and tightening credit markets have begun squeezing consumers and businesses, forcing them to cut spending. As a result, the U.S. economy may have stopped growing in the current quarter and could continue faltering in the second quarter. That would meet a technical definition of a recession — two consecutive quarters of negative growth.
Ken Goldstein, labor economist at the Conference Board, said in a statement accompanying the report that economic signals "are flashing yellow." .....(more)
The complete piece is at:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080320/ap_on_bi_ge/leading_indicators