Economists bit more hopeful as 2011 comes to an end

New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Economists see the glass as a tad more full than empty, but just barely so, when questioned about the future of the U.S. economy as 2011 comes to an end.

A CNN Money survey of 20 top economists found that their fear of the economy slipping into a new recession has fallen in the last three months to 20 percent from 30 percent. Just two economists have a heightened sense of a risk of recession.

The economists also believe the final year-end 2011 economic readings will be among the most robust for the year.

Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation’s overall economic health, is forecast to have advanced at a 3.3 percent annual clip. That would be the best pace of growth since the spring of 2010, and almost twice the 1.8 percent rate in the third quarter.

The economists who participated in the survey also expect that employers added 140,000 new jobs in December, which would mark the third consecutive month of more hirings.

While they are a bit more hopeful, they are not overly expectant about the outlook for growth in 2012. For the full year, growth is anticipated to be a more prudent 2.4 percent, with just 2 percent growth occurring in the first three months of the new year.

The economists polled do not see an end to the unyielding slide in home values, and most don’t see higher housing prices until at least 2013.

Most agree that the European sovereign debt crisis, the U.S. government gridlock and the overall uncertainty in the economy will all pose risks in the coming year.

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