Wednesday, November 30, 2005

GDP growth revised up .5% 

I thought 3.8% was pretty good, but considering the hurricanes a revised 4.3% growth rate reported this morning is quite remarkable. Upward revisions were made to most consumption figures, partially offset by an increase in imports. Along with the news yesterday from the Conference Board that consumer confidence has rebounded sharply in November, we have some reason to believe the rest of 2005 will be cheery.

The Skeptical Optimist, meanwhile, sings the praises of forecaster Brian Wesbury. I've seen Wesbury at economics conferences, and he is a pretty optimistic guy. He's forecasting GDP growth for 2006 at 4%, well above the consensus forecast. I'm not sure I'm going up that high, but the data I see around the St. Cloud area and statewide are also pointing towards accelerating growth.

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