Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reckons the U.S. economy can skirt recession. But the odds are stacked against him ¡ª thanks to banking, politics, and even the weather.
In Powell¡¯s view, the gravity-defying strength of American labor markets ¡ª on display again in jobs data published Friday, which showed a bumper increase last month ¡ª is smoothing the way for a soft landing, even after 5 percentage points of interest-rate hikes in little over a year.
¡°It¡¯s possible that this time is really different,¡± the Fed chief told reporters last week after raising rates for a tenth straight time.
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