"The new government figures out this morning show the U.S. economy shrank by a larger-than-expected annualized rate of 6.2 percent during the final three months of 2008, the worst showing in about 25 years."
Other depressing news
"Nearly every segment of the economy contracted sharply during the fourth quarter, the data show. Consumer spending fell 4.3 percent, compared with 3.8 percent in the third quarter. Investment in office buildings, shopping centers and other nonresidential structures sank 5.9 percent, compared with an increase of 9.7 percent in the previous quarter. Real exports of goods and services plummeted 23.6 percent, compared with an increase of 3 percent in the third quarter."
I also heard on NPR that our GDP is now equal to the amount of money we owe in debt. Meaning if our GDP is 1 trillion, we also are, as individuals, 1 trillion in debt. While this seems a bit amazing experts have seen before. Just one other time in history has this happened. In 1929, just before the depression.
I don't want to sound gloomy but the bottom has not been reached. I am hoping it is reached sometime this year.
