Commerce Sec’y Raimondo: ‘Except for Inflation,’ ‘There’s a Lot to Like’ about Economy

On Thursday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Andrea Mitchell Reports,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo reacted to the second quarter GDP numbers by stating that GDP growth was going to slow, and “we’re feeling, except for inflation, which I know is tough on consumers, there’s a lot to like about this.”

Raimondo stated, “I talk to business leaders daily. … I would say, by and large, the business leaders I speak with aren’t concerned, and they weren’t surprised. Obviously, GDP is going to slow. The GDP growth that we saw last year, 5%, 6%, 7% at times, isn’t sustainable. And so, we were all expecting a slowing of the economy. I would say, when I look at the numbers and I talk to businesspeople and I talk to workers, businesses are hiring, right? The economy created a million jobs last quarter. Businesses are still hiring. Wages are up. Consumers are spending. Consumers’ personal household balance sheets remain strong. So, fundamentally, there’s still a lot of reason to feel good about the economy. Obviously, inflation is our number one economic issue and we’re focused on that. And that is coming down. The long-term forecasts for inflation are coming down. But I think that, if you talk to companies, they are hiring, they are spending, they are growing, no big job losses. And so, we’re feeling, except for inflation, which I know is tough on consumers, there’s a lot to like about this.”

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