NABE: Bad credit top U.S. economic threat

WASHINGTON, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- The subprime mortgage financial crisis has replaced terrorism as the biggest short-term threat to the U.S. economy, a national research group said Monday.

The National Association for Business Economics said 32 percent of its surveyed members cited loan defaults and "excessive household and/or corporate debt" as their biggest near-term concern.

Only 20 percent listed terrorism and the Middle East as their biggest immediate concern, down from 35 percent when the survey was last conducted in March.

Credit risk also topped gas prices, inflation and government spending.

The most serious long-term challenges facing the U.S. economy are healthcare costs, cited by 24 percent of respondents, and an aging population, cited by 21 percent -- responses similar to 2005 and 2006 survey rankings, the group said.

Education and skilled labor ranked close behind, with 17 percent of respondents seeing them as the nation’s most important long-term challenge.