“Sluggish doesn’t mean sturdy. Slow growth doesn’t bring strength. “
When times are hard, people work harder and work to make business more efficient. It is part of the boom/bust cycle.
I would look at the AP's words in the same way as I'd look at the military "preparing the battlefield."
This week the 2nd quarter GNP come out. The first quarter they were in negative territory. Everyone says that was just 'bad weather' as they've tried to talk up this economy. I have no problem with positive thinking and speaking, but it isn't good when that's where they've placed their hopes.
This headline could be the AP preparing everyone for very low growth numbers. The real problem with GDP numbers was revealed last quarter. They showed a 1% decline, but after 2 'adjustments', the actual decline was 2.9%.
Two straight quarters of decline equals a recession.
If the 'growth' on Friday is said to be 1.5% or less, then remember that the 'adjustments' last time ended up subtracting another 1.9%.
In other words, we could be in a recession as we speak, and AP is preparing the battlefield, softening the blow for their beloved Obama Administration. FWIW, the new housing numbers, a big part of the economy, showed a 1% decline.