National recessions ending worldwide

Good morning everyone. I hope that your weekends were all excellent.

Various nations’ recessions ended in the second quarter. Among the significant countries whose economies returned to growth are:

• France
• Germany
• Japan
• South Korea
• Singapore

I am especially encouraged by the first three countries (France, Germany, Japan) and their recessions ending. Remember that way back in the fall I said that I thought the U.S. would be fine in a global wide recession but that I was fearful of the possibility of deep recessions in Europe? France and Germany, along with the UK, are the most important economies in Europe – so this is a very positive sign. Also, Japan, a perennially anemic economy, has emerged from recession. Japan’s growth is due to government spending, but also more importantly due to an expansion in exports. Again, this is an encouraging sign.

While the growth in gross domestic product for the above nations was not massive, it does signal the beginnings of the end of the global recession. The U.S. economy can’t be too far behind.

Jason