So are we in a recession, or not?
CNN
Things aren't looking so bad for the economy, but then again they aren't looking so great either.
On one hand, gross domestic product, a key measure of economic output, shrank for the second straight quarter this week, raising fears that the country has entered -- or will soon enter -- recession territory. On the other hand, the job market remains very strong, telling us the economy is still robust.
Some economists call two consecutive quarters of contraction a technical recession. And with good reason: 10 out of the last 10 times the US economy shrank for two consecutive quarters, the US economy was declared to be in a recession. But massive job losses occurred during seven out of the past seven recessions, and that's not happening now.
Millions of Americans have taken to the skies, hit the road, fired up the barbecue grill and jumped into the pool this weekend to celebrate the start of summer 2024. Analysts are expecting the Memorial Day weekend to usher in yet another summer of strong consumer spending on travel and other leisure activities.