After a two-year rebound, recession risks rise

Tom Petruno
LA Times

The U.S. economy has officially been out of recession for two years, but fear of falling back into the abyss has dogged the recovery every step of the way.

Now, the prospect of recession no longer is a fringe view.

"Recession is not inevitable, but I think there's better than a 50-50 chance now," said Bill Gross, the respected investment chief at bond fund giant Pimco in Newport Beach.

Stock markets worldwide have been ringing warning bells since late July, as share prices have plunged in the steepest pullback since the 2008 financial-system crash. The Dow Jones index sank nearly 600 points combined on Thursday and Friday and slumped 4% for the week, its fourth straight weekly decline.

(More here.)