Are we in for another spring slump on Wall Street? This year, the U.S. economy – and stock market – started out strong, but a few signs of a slowdown have emerged.
First, the Commerce Department reported that GDP grew at an annual rate of only 2.5 percent from January through March. U.S. hiring in March also was disappointing, logging the lowest monthly gain since June 2012. Then there’s the pesky combination of spending cuts and higher tax rates that have gone into effect as well. Oh – and don’t forget the struggles of many overseas economies so intricately connected to ours.
Although the reasons behind this year’s slowdown are somewhat unique, the springtime phenomenon has had some regularity. For each of the last three years, the U.S. economy has slowed down and Wall Street has appeared to lose some steam at this time of year. And for each of the last three years, the worry is that it won’t only be an early year phenomenon but instead will lead to a longer-term slowdown.
So what’s going to happen this year? For starters, the U.S. economy is in much better shape than it was two or three years ago. That’s only one reason why the springtime slump isn’t likely to turn into anything more serious or long term. And some even think the whole thing is a myth anyway. Want to read more about the springtime slump and how to monitor it? Here’s a list of indicators that can help.