Wednesday, June 3, 2015

A Problem Widely Shared

As recently as last Friday, we have written about the disappointing performance of the U.S. economy. The Washington Post Wonkblog wants us to know it isn't just a U.S. problem, the rest of the world isn't thriving either.
In its forecast for the world economy released Wednesday, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development found that global growth during the first quarter was the weakest at any point since the crisis. The organization now predicts the global economy will expand at an annual rate of 3.1 percent — much slower than the 4 percent rate it had forecast just a few months ago. It counts among the culprits the sharp deceleration in the American economy, disappointing progress in China and Japan and a worldwide shortfall of capital investment.
"They're rioting in Africa, unemployed in Spain,
There's no money in Greece, and there's death in Ukraine.
The whole world is festering with unhappy souls,
The French hate the Germans, the Germans hate the Poles."
- with apologies to Sheldon Harnick and the Kingston Trio.