[Chi-Town]

Q2 results are quite encouraging.

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 4%.
Consumer spending increased 2.5%.
Housing construction jumped 7.5%.
Exports rose 9.5%.
Business inventories also showed a nice increase.

Job growth, higher wages, and strong housing are predicted for the second half of the year.

Now that's good news not just for us, but maybe more so for our kids and grandkids.

[janmcn]

Originally Posted by Chi-Town

Q2 results are quite encouraging.

Gross domestic product (GDP) rose 4%.
Consumer spending increased 2.5%.
Housing construction jumped 7.5%.
Exports rose 9.5%.
Business inventories also showed a nice increase.

Job growth, higher wages, and strong housing are predicted for the second half of the year.

Now that's good news not just for us, but maybe more so for our kids and grandkids.

And the unemployment rate is at its lowest level since September 2008.

There will be dancing at the squares.

[MikeV]

I am still not convinced all is going to be well. We still have a lot of people who have stopped looking for work or are underemployed or who are working part time. The stock market is due for a massive correction and we still have leadership problems in Washington DC.

[folkh]

Originally Posted by MikeV

I am still not convinced all is going to be well. We still have a lot of people who have stopped looking for work or are underemployed or who are working part time. The stock market is due for a massive correction and we still have leadership problems in Washington DC.

Agree........

[Chi-Town]

I am not saying all is well, just heading in the right direction. But the main reason for my post was to have a feel good thread to counterbalance a couple of previous fear mongering ones.

[Sable99]

I'm not convinced either. In Michigan, most people I know are working 2-3 part time jobs to make ends meet. A friend recently lost her full time job and is now working 2 part time jobs. She had worked there for over 22 years when she was terminated. She will be eligible for retirement but she is around 48 and won't be able to get the retirement for years!

[njbchbum]

Nice thought about feeling good. Will save mine for the 'revised numbers' report.

As pre the Bureau of Economic Analysis:

" The percent change in real GDP was revised down 0.2 percentage point for 2011, was revised down 0.5 percentage point for 2012, and was revised up 0.3 percentage point for 2013.
• For 2011, the largest contributors to the downward revision to the percent change in real GDP were a downward revision to personal consumption expenditures (PCE) and an upward revision to imports.
• For 2012, the largest contributors to the downward revision were downward revisions to PCE and to state and local government spending.
• For 2013, the largest contributors to the upward revision were upward revisions to PCE and to state and local government spending; these revisions were partly offset by a downward revision to private inventory investment."

In its report following the GDP report, The Wall Street Journal said the recovery that began in 2009 was the weakest since World War II.