Economy: double dip?

WASHINGTON — They're a minority, but a vocal one, and they're hovering like storm clouds over a brittle recovery. They're the Double Dippers — the politicians, economists and analysts who foresee back-to-back recessions. Their warnings could become self-fulfilling prophecies if they frighten enough people into holding tightly onto their wallets. With consumer spending accounting for two-thirds of economic activity, anything that further rattles consumers can undercut recovery hopes. Recent data has shown that, after growing moderately for most of the past year, the U.S. economy appears to be slowing. This was underscored by Friday's government report that U.S. economic growth slowed to 2.4 percent from April to May, down from a revised 3.7 percent in the previous quarter. Such statistics are providing more ammunition to the double dippers. Recent data has shown that, after growing moderately for most of the past year, the economy appears to be slowing in some parts of the country and in key sectors such as consumer spending. That's providing more ammunition to the double dippers. Long road ahead Most mainstream economists agree the recovery road will be long and bumpy, but probably without leading into double-dip territory. But there are plenty of other voices warning of grimmer times ahead. Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman of Princeton University argues in his New York Times columns that the U.S. already may have fallen into the early stages of a long, deep depression such as Japan's "lost decade." He claims that President Barack Obama and Congress have failed to provide enough stimulus spending.