CBO’s Orszag: Stimulus Will 'Jolt’ Economy

Congressional Budget Office director Peter Orszag said Tuesday that the $165 billion stimulus package that has begun to be released represents a “huge amount of stimulus” over a fairly concentrated time period.

Speaking at the Milken Global Conference in Los Angeles, Orszag said the U.S. is “very likely” going through a period of “negative growth.” He said the stimulus package will provide “a very substantial amount of money in a very short period of time.”

Orszag said he believes that the stimulus will give the U.S. economy “a little jolt” and a “short-term kickstart,” while the effects of monetary policy easing are gradually felt in the economy.

“The American economy has a lot of resilience to it,” the CBO director said. He added that the stimulus package could provide a strong boost in the second and third quarters, but then there could be a quarter or two of slower growth.

Orszag said the recent decline of the American dollar “is occurring very smoothl,y which is giving a boost to net exports.”

— Market News International

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