Risks posed by the U.S. economy  The quarter-on-quarter slowdown in the real GDP growth rate for the April-June quarter and declines in many economic indicators released since July have sparked serious concern about the outlook for the U.S. economy.
For example, forecasts by private-sector economists for the real GDP growth rate have been revised downward from a mean of around 3.0 to 3.5 percent for 2010 and 2011, to a mean of just below 3.0 percent for both years.