Commerce raises Q2 GDP growth estimate to 2.2% from 1.5%
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said the U.S. economy remains in “good times,” citing corporate profits, low unemployment and low debt among companies and consumers in a recent interview with the WSJ Leadership Institute’s Alan Murray. Dimon also warned that wars abroad, large government deficits and persistent inflation continue to pose risks to the outlook, calling the latter “sticky” after five years.
“It’s good times,” Dimon said. He listed the supportive factors as corporate profits, low unemployment, and low debt levels among both companies and consumers.
The Commerce Department last month raised its estimate of annualized gross domestic product growth for the second quarter to 2.2%, up from its prior 1.5% estimate. The revision reflected in part rising investment tied to the ongoing data center buildout, which the agency identified as an important driver of the nation’s economic expansion.
Asked about risks, Dimon pointed to the unpredictability of wars abroad, large government deficits, and inflationary pressures. On inflation specifically, Dimon was direct: “It’s been there for five years, folks. It’s sticky.”
Dimon was candid about the difficulty of forecasting any future downturn. “Eventually there’ll be a downturn. Eventually it’ll be driven by a confluence of events that today you can’t guess what they are. You can throw stuff on the wall and make believe you know,” Dimon said.
JPMorgan “analyzes to death” potential risks so the bank will be prepared, Dimon said, even as he described the current state of the economy as “in good standing.”
The interview can be watched at wsj.com or listened to on Apple and Spotify, alongside other episodes of the WSJ Leadership Institute Presents: Leaders podcast.