Posted on 04/30/2015 11:13:21 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
The Atlanta Fed nailed US Gross Domestic Product in the first quarter.
On Wednesday, we learned that the US economy grew by just 0.2%, far below the consensus forecast for 1% growth among economists. Of the 86 economists surveyed by Bloomberg, only four estimated that GDP growth would be 0.2% or lower.
The Atlanta Fed had long forecast 0.2% growth before revising it down to 0.1% after last Friday's durable goods report.
And just a day after the disappointing Q1 GDP release, the Atlanta Fed has news about Q2: the economy will grow by just 0.9%, according to their latest forecast. Here's what they wrote in a post on their website:
"The initial GDPNow model forecast for real GDP growth (seasonally adjusted annual rate) in the second quarter of 2015 was 0.9 percent on April 30. Real GDP grew 0.2 percent in the first quarter, according to the "advance" estimate from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 0.1 percentage point higher than the GDPNow model nowcast."
Economists noted that the winter weather, West Coast port strikes and lower energy prices slowed down the economy – all temporary factors.
Still, for a sense of how bad Q2 may be, according to the Atlanta Fed, Bank of America Merril Lynch is forecasting 3.5% growth. Goldman Sachs is forecasting 3.0% growth.
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Unexpected....
the sad truth is... the only thing that has kept Obama and his failed polices from throwing us into great depression 2.0 was the fracking boom which just by chance happened to occur at just the right moment to save us for awhile.
I was amused at how our syndicated news feed covered the poor Q1 news - they reported unemployment filings were at a three year low!
Lower fuel prices will spur the economy as people have more money to spend, they will travel more, buy more......or use it to pay for Obamacare which is a drain on the economy.
Or another way of looking at it, Obama's economy can only work in perfect weather and high energy prices.
I do not understand how lower energy prices are a bad thing.
They use the same people to figure unemployment as counts the Criminal invaders sneaking across our southern border.
Yup, and now that the fracking boom has slowed down, we are seeing what the "real" economy looks like.
The Atlanta Fed is broadcasting a warning to us so that when the bad economy starts to show in a dramatic way, they can say, "Hey we told you so!".
Pay off debt and get ready.
Will the Fed Run Out of Excuses as the Weather Warms?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FqLGJPoC18
1% would have been hailed as a massive booming economy. lol
If you slit your wrists, eventually blood flow will reach all time low
It isn't.
However, in this sluggish recovery, the oil boom was the one bright spot in this economy and it was practically the only decent paying fulltime jobs created in this sluggish economy. But, oil prices had to stay high, I believe it was around 70-80 dollars a barrel, for many of these companies to stay in business. When those who are employed in the oil patch business lose their jobs, were will they go? And as more and more of these folks lose their jobs, it will affect other businesses in these communities
Lol
Thanks - that does make sense, but still not a good thing.
However, the last few winters have been brutally bad in the Upper Midwest and Northeast. When eastern Massachusetts got essentially two years of normal snowfall in the space of a month and the Buffalo area experienced this past winter one of the most brutal bouts of lake effect snow, no wonder the US economy slowed down over the winter. I'd ask serious questions if the April-June quarter is bad, though.
That may be so, but I have never seen a good economic report that was tempered by unusually good weather.
The only thing certain about explanations as to why the economy dips is that it is not Obama’s fault. And if only the Republicans would get out of his way...
If the economy can’t handle that we’re in serious trouble.
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