NYT paints gloomy picture of US economy

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NEW YORK, Aug 20: Writing under the heading 'No end in sight', the New York Times in its lead editorial yesterday painted a rather gloomy picture about the US economy surrounding which the global economy moved. A year into the financial crisis, the news is grim and there are signs of even worse troubles ahead. There may soon be more bank failures and a spate of corporate bankruptcies, NYT prognosticates.

Japan is the other major global economy which is in deep distress. The Bank of Japan , country's central bank, delivered its bleakest assessment of the economy since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, in a sign that a global slump sparked by the United States credit squeeze might be spreading too quickly for Japan to avert recession, wire service Reuters in a report said.

The BBC in its evening bulletin Tuesday predicted collapse of several banks in the forseeable future. It did not name any particular bank. Such grim news emanating from the world's major economies have seemingly not inspired any anxiety in the upper reaches of the Bangladesh administration. It has no time to cast its glance around the world to assess what disaster may be in store for the country now engaged in a lingering acrimonious political debate.

There was good news from Germany. The investors' confidence recovered in August from a 16-year low the month before, rising unexpectedly by 8.4 per cent as fears of an economic downturn in Europe's biggest economy appeared to ease, said an AP report. But Germany is facing a 8.9 per cent inflation. China, decidedly a major factor in the global economy, has yet to feel the pinch of the downhill slide of the global economy. Its economy has got a big boost from the on-going Olympic Games.

The unemployment rate in US' will almost certainly rise'. Employers have shed nearly half million jobs and those who are still on service have seen cut in working hours; scanty pay hike and bonus have vanished. Millions of Americans are already suffering. "And we fear millions more will be hurt before this crisis ends. They cannot wait until after the election (which is due on Nov 4) for help, the NYT concluded.