COLLEGE PARK, Md., Nov. 3 (UPI) -- Fresh data from the U.S. Labor Department indicates the U.S. economy is close to a combination of recession with inflation, an economist said Friday.
Peter Morici, economist at the University of Maryland and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission, said word that employers created a paltry 92,000 jobs last month plus a fall in unemployment during October to 4.4 percent is bad news.
"Overall, employment is growing more slowly than in the third quarter, when (gross domestic product) growth was a disappointing 1.6 percent," Morici said. "At the October pace of jobs creation, unemployment will likely rise in the months ahead, and the probability that the economy will skip into recession has grown significantly."
He also noted Labor's disclosure of strong wage growth indicates "inflation remains stubbornly high" and that the combination of recession and inflation known as "stagflation is threatening to grip the economy."
