Files containing subject U.S. economy

Whenever a pilot encounters turbulent air, the seat-belt sign goes on. Even in mild disturbances, one cannot rule out an unexpected drop in altitude. This might explain why economists have the reputation of predicting "six out of the last two recessions." Like pilots, they tend to be overly cautious, knowing the potential danger of falling. [READ MORE]

It did not exactly sneak up on us. Last quarter, after the fifth straight drop in our index of leading economic indicators and a virtual halt to the growth of taxable retail sales, we put the Puget Sound economy on watch. [READ MORE]

The Puget Sound economy is in excellent health, according to mid-way figures for 1997. At the start of the year, following reports that Boeing would add thousands more to its work force, we predicted that business and government would create 33,500 jobs during the first and second quarters. [READ MORE]