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US growth: back from the brink
There was considerable pessimism surrounding the US economy at the beginning of the year. Global slowdown fears had prompted steep falls in equity markets through late 2018, which in turn, sapped US business and consumer confidence. Much of the concern related to US-China trade tensions and while President Trump had postponed additional tariffs on Chinese imports, there was little sign a trade deal was close. Then there was the ongoing government shutdown, which left hundreds of thousands of government workers without pay through late December and much of January and led to expectations of weaker spending. On top of ... (full story)