CBO projects higher unemployment, slow exit from inflation

By FATIMA HUSSEIN, JOSH BOAK and KEVIN FREKING
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Congressional Budget Office says it expects the U.S. economy to stagnate this year. It projects that the unemployment rate will jump to 5.1% — a bleak outlook that was paired with a 10-year projection that publicly held U.S. debt would nearly double by 2033. The updated 10-year Budget and Economic Outlook released Wednesday outlines stark expectations for the coming year as high interest rates and inflation, though easing, continue to impact U.S. households and businesses. The latest figures seemed to affirm the worst fears of many U.S. consumers and businesses. But U.S. economy has seldom behaved as anticipated through the pandemic and its aftermath.