Recession has another year, economists say

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Nov. 21 (UPI) -- University of Michigan economists Friday forecast declines in employment and a slow economy though 2009 with a sluggish recovery starting in 2010.

Unemployment, they predicted, would reach about 8 percent next year, the Detroit Free Press reported.

"While the current financial crisis is an extreme event that has raised fears of economic collapse, we are not forecasting economic catastrophe but rather a recession that is best characterized as moderately severe," economist Joan Crary said.

Crary predicted the recession will be worse than the downturns of 1990-1991 and 2001, but less severe than 1974-1975 and 1981-1982, the Free Press said.

The economists, including Stanley Sedo and Janet Wolfe, predicted the gross domestic product will fall by 1 percent in 2009 and gain 2 percent in 2010.

The forecast includes the loss of another 2.4 million jobs. This year, the United States has lost about 1 million jobs this year, Media-Newswire.com reported.