One of Donald Trump’s top economic advisers has confidently rejected growing concerns about a U.S. recession, insisting there is “100% not” going to be a downturn this year, even as Wall Street voices increasing alarm.
Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council, pointed to robust employment data as a key indicator of continued economic strength.
“We’ve seen very strong jobs numbers,” Hassett told Fox Business. “Everything’s through the roof, anecdotally, with the CEOs I’ve been talking to.”
He added that business leaders were largely unfazed by uncertainty over tariffs: “When I ask if tariffs are dragging on production, they say, ‘No — we’re getting as much onshore as we can.’”
Hassett’s optimism contrasts with a growing chorus of recession warnings from Wall Street. Morgan Stanley now puts the chance of a downturn at 60%, while Goldman Sachs estimates a 45% likelihood.
JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon recently described a recession as the “likely outcome,” and BlackRock’s Larry Fink suggested the U.S. may already be on the brink.
Goldman Sachs chief David Solomon echoed those concerns, and Ark Invest CEO Cathie Wood predicted a recession could arrive in the first half of this year.
Despite the gloomy forecasts, markets rallied at the start of the week after the U.S. announced that smartphones and computers would be exempt from its tariff regime.
