Grim Economic News Continues

According to the just-released macroeconomic forecast by Economy.com, things are not getting better for now. We may be headed back into recession.

Here are the highlights of Economy.com's latest economic update:

1. The entire global economy is struggling to keep its head above water, with economies ranging from Germany to Japan to much of Latin and South America are engulfed in recession. Even earlier strong and expanding economies, like Britain and Australia, have weakened in recent months. Only the Chinese economy continues to expand with any consistent vigor.

2. The U.S. economy is at a standstill. Real GDP is barely growing, while manufacturing production has resumed its downhill slide. What output gains are occurring have not been sufficient to ignite any net job creation. After losing 1.75 million jobs in 2001, the economy created no jobs last year, and payrolls resumed declining at year’s end. Job losses in manufacturing, commercial construction, travel, distribution, and investment banking continue to all but trump job gains in home and public construction, educational services, healthcare, defense, and mortgage banking.

3. The economy’s difficulties are evident everywhere, with few bright spots for now. Large regional economies, ranging from Boston and New York City in the Northeast to Atlanta and Dallas in the South to Chicago and Detroit in the Midwest to the Bay Area of California and Denver in the West, are engulfed in full-blown recessions. Close to one-third of the nation’s 300 metropolitan areas remain in recession. Solid growth is occurring in only a handful of economies across the country, the most notable being southern California and south Florida.

4. Overall, the economic barometers currently suggest that the U.S. economy is just barely skirting recession. Indeed, the odds that the economy is, or will soon be, back in recession remain very high at one-in-three.

If your economic development leaders want to know why your organization is not getting more results at this time, just have them read this article. Business, government and community leaders are disgruntled in many areas at this point. It is vitally important that you as an ED professional keep your leaders well-informed about how larger economic, national security and other events are holding back growth in your local or state economy. You tell them Don Iannone said "it's the economy, stupid."