Earlier this week, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said that she didn’t know whether the U.S. economy was in a recession, adding, “But I don’t think anybody could tell you right now if we’re in a recession or not.” However, a new Wall Street Journal poll of economists finds that America “has sunk into a recession and government action is critical to stem the damage.” Fifty-two percent “now expect U.S. gross domestic product to contract in the third and fourth quarters of this year, as well as the first quarter of 2009. … Economists put the odds of recession in the next 12 months at 89%, up from 60% in last month’s survey.”
Update
The AP reports, “Stock prices swung sharply in early trading Friday as investors again dumped stocks but also scooped up shares that have been devastated by more than a week of intense and panicked selling. The Dow Jones industrials, down nearly 700 points in the opening minutes of trading, recovered to a loss of just over 125 and then headed lower again.”
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