The U.S. economy shrank in the last three months by 0.9% which is the 2nd consecutive quarter of negative economic growth in the nation.

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In the first quarter, the GDP decreased at an annual rate of 1.6%.

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History suggests that two consecutive quarters of negative growth is often considered a recession.

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However, the White House has pushed back against calling the current economy a recession.

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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen noted in a recent appearance on NBC's Meet the Press that conditions in the economy are unique & it's not a recession.

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"When you're creating almost 400,000 jobs a month in the nation, that is not a recession," Yellen said.

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Yellen also pointed to consumer spending, which has remained strong & she highlighted positive data on the credit quality of citizens.

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But as the Federal Reserve continues to hike interest rates aggressively to fight high inflation, fears of a recession have grown.

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On Thursday, the central bank raised rates by an additional 3/4th of a percentage point.

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In June, the US unemployment rate held steady at 3.6%, which is near its pre-pandemic low & the economy added 372,000 jobs.

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