Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen Says “You Don’t Have a Recession” with an Unemployment Rate at 50-Year Low

Joshua Ramos
Source: UPI

Speaking on ABC’s “Good Morning America” program, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has stated “you don’t have a recession,” amidst current job data along with the country’s unemployment rate at a 50-year low.

Specifically, Yellen noted the unemployment figures, along with the current 500,000 jobs, as a basis for why she does not observe a recession. Conversely, the statements arrived just two weeks after the Treasury Secretary spoke of the country’s recessionary risk due to the Federal Reserve.

Janet Yellen Speaks Against Recession Risk

A potential recession has been a constant fear for many economic experts. As the Federal Reserve executed its year-long fight against inflation through continuous interest rate hikes, there is concern over the eventual consequences of that campaign.

Now, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated her belief that “you don’t have a recession,” amidst the current unemployment rate at a 50-year low. The sentiment, shared on ABC’s “Good Morning America”, discussed the more than 50,000 jobs available as the most significant determining factor against a possible recession for the country.

File – Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen testifies before the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing, May 10, 2022, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The U.S. will close the last avenue for Russia to pay back its billions in debt to international investors on Wednesday, making a Russian default on its debts for the first time since the Bolshevik Revolution all but inevitable. The Treasury Department said in a notification Tuesday that it does not plan to renew the license to allow Russia to keep paying its debtholders through American banks. (Tom Williams/Pool via AP, File)

Yellen’s Thoughts

“You don’t have a recession when you have 500,000 jobs and the lowest unemployment rate in more than 50 years,” Yellen stated on the program. Adding, “What I see is a path in which inflation is declining significantly and the economy is remaining strong.”

Moreover, Reuters noted Yellen’s additional statements of inflation falling over the past six months, despite it being too high. Thereafter speaking to the potential of measures taken by the Biden administration that could further help that number decline.

Conversely, Yellen had previously incited some concern by stating the risk of the recession was still high in a statement on Jan. 27. Curating a rather confusing turn of perspective in just a two-week time frame. Surely, the data released in the past days could not have snuffed the false potential concern so quickly.