Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has added his voice to the chorus of voices warning of impending trouble for the US economy.
The billionaire wrote on social media that the economy is sending a signal to “shut the hatches”.
Growth in the US has already contracted for two straight quarters, a milestone seen as a recession in many countries, but not in the US.
With the US Federal Reserve raising interest rates to counter rising prices, many economists expect the slowdown to continue.
The drumbeat of concern recently forced US President Joe Biden to address the issue.
In an interview last week he said: “I don’t think there will be a recession. If it does, then it will be a very mild recession.”
In the US, a panel of economists is tasked with explaining the formal beginning and end of recessions. They use a number of indicators in addition to gross domestic product when determining.
With the November midterm elections approaching, Mr Biden has tried to argue that the slowdown in economic activity is a healthy departure from the surge in growth that followed the pandemic lockdown.
Job creation remains robust, unemployment rates low and household finances relatively healthy.
But with inflation well above the 2% target, hitting 8.2% last month, hopes that authorities will be able to deal with the problem without triggering a potentially severe slowdown have faded .
“We have to get inflation behind us. I wish there was a painless way to do this. There isn’t,” Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said last month.
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The US housing sector – which by some estimates accounts for about 15% of the economy – has already slowed sharply as borrowing costs approach 7% – the highest rate since 2002, prompting job cuts at banks and other real estate companies.
In recent days, heads of the largest US banks have warned of darker days in updates to investors.
“In my conversations with CEOs, they tell me they want to review business opportunities and want more certainty before committing to longer-term plans,” said Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon.
“We are tightening economic conditions very, very quickly. And when you tighten economic conditions, it affects those things.”
JP Morgan’s Jamie Dimon, who has previously warned of an impending “hurricane,” said consumers are likely to have used up the cushion in their bank accounts by the middle of next year.
Amazon, which will update investors later this month, is also grappling with a slowdown in its e-commerce business. It has slowed hiring and said it is working to cut costs.
Mr. Bezos resigned as Amazon’s chief executive officer last year but remains chief executive officer. He has criticized the President’s economic policies in the past and accused Mr Biden of being disingenuous about the forces driving prices up.
He shared a video of Mr Solomon speaking about the need to be cautious amid economic uncertainties.
“Yes, the odds in this economy are telling you to shut the hatches,” Mr. Bezos wrote.
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