Trend watch: U.S. workers struggle while U.S. corporations boom

Citing a survey by the National Association for Business Economics a national panel of economists led by University of Colorado’s Richard Wobbekind this week predicted slow growth in the overall U.S. economy through the rest of 2010 and into 2011 even as U.S. corporations enjoy their best quarter ever.

“The economy will struggle against financial headwinds,” reported the economists. “Consumer spending is expected to remain modest throughout the forecast horizon due to weak job gains, persistently high unemployment, and negligible growth in household net worth.”

Yet American businesses are going gangbusters. In the past third quarter corporate America earned a record $1.66 trillion in profits, according to a Commerce Department report released on Tuesday.

The growth in corporate profits can be credited to the fact that corporations can now produce more with fewer workers, while simultaneously they increasingly focus on foreign markets, such as China and India, where growth far outpaces the sluggish American economy.

Also on Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal CEO Council offered a solution to the American job deficit: we must further embrace global trade.

In a message to Obama, they said he must become “an advocate for business in general” if he wants to create jobs for ordinary Americans. Because if he doesn’t advocate for business, who will?

Got a tip? Freelance story pitch? Send us an e-mail. Follow The Colorado Independent on Twitter.

Comments are closed.