WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama said on Sunday, Aug 29 the U.S. economy was expanding but not at a robust enough pace and there was no "magic bullet" that will fix its problems.
Obama said in an NBC interview that the batch of grim economic data over the past few weeks was something his administration had anticipated.
Gloomy reports on gross domestic product and housing have raised fears the fragile economy could slip back into a recession or face a lengthy period of growth that is too slow to make much of a dent in the 9.5 percent unemployment rate.
"The economy is still growing, but it's not growing as fast as it needs to," Obama told NBC in the interview in New Orleans, where he stopped after after a weeklong vacation on the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard.
Obama faces a dilemma in trying to reassure Americans about the economy without appearing to be out of touch with frustrations, which have been growing over the sluggish growth and scarcity of jobs.
The economy is the top issue in the Nov. 2 congressional elections, where Obama's Democrats are bracing for potentially big losses to opposition Republicans.
Obama gave little indication in the interview of any new proposals that might be unveiled in the near future. He noted that that the "short-term politics" of the election season might make it hard to get such measures passed now.
But he urged the U.S. Congress to pass some of his existing proposals such as plans aimed at spurring lending to small businesses and some tax breaks for such firms. He also touted his initiatives to encourage investment in clean energy.
"We should be passing legislation that helps small businesses get credit," he said. "That eliminates capital gains taxes so that they have more incentive to invest right now. There are a whole host of measures we could take. No single-- element of which is a magic bullet.
Data released last week showed that gross domestic product growth, the measure of total goods and services output within U.S. borders, was revised down to only 1.6 percent in the second quarter from 2.4 percent. The economy grew at a 3.7 percent pace in the first quarter of 2010.
New U.S. single-family home sales unexpectedly fell in July to set their slowest pace on record while prices were the lowest in more than 6-1/2 years, according to figures also issued last week. - Reuters
Obama said in an NBC interview that the batch of grim economic data over the past few weeks was something his administration had anticipated.
Gloomy reports on gross domestic product and housing have raised fears the fragile economy could slip back into a recession or face a lengthy period of growth that is too slow to make much of a dent in the 9.5 percent unemployment rate.
"The economy is still growing, but it's not growing as fast as it needs to," Obama told NBC in the interview in New Orleans, where he stopped after after a weeklong vacation on the Massachusetts island of Martha's Vineyard.
Obama faces a dilemma in trying to reassure Americans about the economy without appearing to be out of touch with frustrations, which have been growing over the sluggish growth and scarcity of jobs.
The economy is the top issue in the Nov. 2 congressional elections, where Obama's Democrats are bracing for potentially big losses to opposition Republicans.
Obama gave little indication in the interview of any new proposals that might be unveiled in the near future. He noted that that the "short-term politics" of the election season might make it hard to get such measures passed now.
But he urged the U.S. Congress to pass some of his existing proposals such as plans aimed at spurring lending to small businesses and some tax breaks for such firms. He also touted his initiatives to encourage investment in clean energy.
"We should be passing legislation that helps small businesses get credit," he said. "That eliminates capital gains taxes so that they have more incentive to invest right now. There are a whole host of measures we could take. No single-- element of which is a magic bullet.
Data released last week showed that gross domestic product growth, the measure of total goods and services output within U.S. borders, was revised down to only 1.6 percent in the second quarter from 2.4 percent. The economy grew at a 3.7 percent pace in the first quarter of 2010.
New U.S. single-family home sales unexpectedly fell in July to set their slowest pace on record while prices were the lowest in more than 6-1/2 years, according to figures also issued last week. - Reuters
No comments:
Post a Comment