27 February 2009

U.S. economy shrinks by 6.2%

The following is excerpted from today's edition of "globeandmail.com".

The U.S. economy contracted at a staggering 6.2 per cent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century, as consumers and businesses ratcheted back spending, plunging the country deeper into recession.

The U.S. Commerce Department report released Friday showed the economy sinking much faster than the 3.8 per cent annualized drop for the October-December quarter first estimated by the government last month. It also was considerably weaker than the 5.4 per cent annualized decline economists expected.

Looking ahead, economists predict consumers and businesses will keep cutting back spending, making the first six months of this year especially rocky.

The new report offered grim proof that the U.S. economy's economic tailspin accelerated in the fourth quarter under a slew of negative forces feeding on each other. The economy started off 2008 on feeble footing, picked up a bit of speed in the spring and then contracted at an annualized rate of 0.5 per cent in the third quarter.

The faster downhill slide in the final quarter of last year came as the financial crisis... intensified...

The new GDP figure — like the old one — marked the weakest quarterly showing since an annualized drop of 6.4 per cent in the first quarter of 1982, when the country was suffering through an intense recession.

American consumers — spooked by vanishing jobs, sinking home values and shrinking investment portfolios have cut back. In turn, companies are slashing production and payrolls. Rising foreclosures are aggravating the already stricken housing market, hard-to-get credit has stymied business investment and is crimping the ability of some consumers to make big-ticket purchases.

It's creating a self-perpetuating vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are finding hard to break...

For all of 2008, the economy grew by just 1.1 per cent, weaker than the government initially estimated. That was down from a 2 per cent gain in 2007 and marked the slowest growth since the last recession in 2001.

In the fourth quarter, consumers cut spending at a 4.3 per cent pace. That was deeper than the initial 3.5 per cent annualized drop and marked the biggest decline since the second quarter of 1980.

Businesses slashed spending on equipment and software at an annualized pace of 28.8 per cent in the final quarter of last year. That also was deeper than first reported and was the worst showing since the first quarter of 1958.

Fallout from the housing collapse spread to other areas. Builders cut spending on commercial construction projects by 21.1 per cent, the most since the first quarter of 1975. Home builders slashed spending at a 22.2 per cent pace, the most since the start of 2008.

A sharper drop in U.S. exports also factored into the weaker fourth-quarter performance. Economic troubles overseas are sapping demand for domestic goods and services.