President Joe Biden said on Wednesday he did not believe the US economy will fall into recession either this year or next year, his most confident prediction on the fate of an economy that is still rattled by fears of a downturn.
Asked in an interview whether he thought there would be a recession this year, Biden responded: "No, or next year. From the moment I got elected, how many of the experts are saying within the next six months there's gonna be recession?"
Economists for months have been warning of a possible recession as the US Federal Reserve raised interest rates in order to tame decades-high inflation.
Biden himself has said a recession was possible, and earlier this week he told reporters that the risk was very low.
On the whole, economic data in recent months has moved in the president's favor, particularly after inflation spiked to a 40-year high last summer and government reports showed the US economy could be heading into a recession.
Strong job numbers last week, which occurred despite layoffs in the technology sector as well as in interest-rate-sensitive sectors like housing and finance, poured cold water on market expectations that the US central bank was close to pausing its monetary policy tightening cycle.
Israeli planes and tanks pounded areas across the Gaza Strip overnight and on Sunday, destroying several residential buildings, witnesses said, as Palestinians desperately awaited implementation of a US plan to end the war.
The number of students confirmed dead after the collapse of a boarding school building in Indonesia rose to 36, from 16 a day earlier, the country's disaster mitigation agency said on Sunday.
Russia rained missiles and drones on Ukraine in a mass overnight attack, officials said on Sunday, killing at least five people and damaging civilian infrastructure including energy facilities across numerous regions.
Heavy rains triggered landslides and flash floods blocking roads, washing away bridges and killing at least 47 people since Friday in Nepal, officials said on Sunday.