U.S. chief executive officers are
turning more pessimistic about a second-half recovery as rising
unemployment and Europe's debt turmoil threaten domestic growth
prospects.
CEOs from General Motors Co. (GM) to Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) to Manpower Inc. say they are concerned about the health of the U.S. economy. While economists predict a continuing expansion this year and next, executives see a mounting number of obstacles that could clip growth.
U.S. employers added the fewest number of workers to their payrolls in a year last month, while companies including Tiffany & Co. (TIF) and mattress maker Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (TPX) cut their full-year forecasts. European policy makers are also struggling to resolve a crisis that has tipped at least 8 of the 17 euro-area economies into recession. The U.S. presidential election is another area of concern, CEOs said.
"There are so many uncertainties," said Jeffrey Joerres, CEO of Manpower (MAN), the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based provider of temporary workers. "If these uncertainties keep stacking up and none get resolved, we'll see a hiring pause rather than the current slowdown."
After a 1.7 percent expansion last year, U.S. gross domestic product may increase by 2.2 percent in 2012 and by 2.4 percent in 2013, the median of 70 economists surveyed from June 1 to June 5 shows. The estimates are down 0.1 percentage point from those issued last month.
No Better CEOs see jobs as a key driver of growth, even as they keep a lid on their own spending and hiring. Supervalu Inc. (SVU)'s Albertsons grocery store chain said this week it will cut as many as 2,500 jobs. Hewlett-Packard has announced the biggest round of job cuts out of any U.S. company this year, at 27,000, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ceos-lose-optimism-job-slowdown-040100072.html
CEOs from General Motors Co. (GM) to Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) to Manpower Inc. say they are concerned about the health of the U.S. economy. While economists predict a continuing expansion this year and next, executives see a mounting number of obstacles that could clip growth.
U.S. employers added the fewest number of workers to their payrolls in a year last month, while companies including Tiffany & Co. (TIF) and mattress maker Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (TPX) cut their full-year forecasts. European policy makers are also struggling to resolve a crisis that has tipped at least 8 of the 17 euro-area economies into recession. The U.S. presidential election is another area of concern, CEOs said.
"There are so many uncertainties," said Jeffrey Joerres, CEO of Manpower (MAN), the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based provider of temporary workers. "If these uncertainties keep stacking up and none get resolved, we'll see a hiring pause rather than the current slowdown."
After a 1.7 percent expansion last year, U.S. gross domestic product may increase by 2.2 percent in 2012 and by 2.4 percent in 2013, the median of 70 economists surveyed from June 1 to June 5 shows. The estimates are down 0.1 percentage point from those issued last month.
No Better CEOs see jobs as a key driver of growth, even as they keep a lid on their own spending and hiring. Supervalu Inc. (SVU)'s Albertsons grocery store chain said this week it will cut as many as 2,500 jobs. Hewlett-Packard has announced the biggest round of job cuts out of any U.S. company this year, at 27,000, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Read more: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/ceos-lose-optimism-job-slowdown-040100072.html
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