The economy reached a peak of activity in December 2007 and has been declining since, according to the business cycle dating committee of the NBER.
The government, academics and the private sector generally defer to the NBER's judgments about recessions.
The committee does not clothes hanger
judge a recession as two consecutive quarterly declines in gross domestic product; rather, it examines quarterly data along with four key monthly economic indicators: employment, incomes, industrial output and sales.
Employment and incomes peaked in bottom hangers
December, industrial output peaked in January, and sales peaked in June, the NBER committee said.
The committee's definition of a recession is as follows: "A recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally coat hangers
coat hanger visible in production, employment, real income, and other indicators."
The committee, which includes academic economists, met on Friday by conference call. Several members of the committee had said earlier that the economy was likely in a recession, but said they bamboo hangers - http://www.lipuhanger.com