Steve Forbes, chair and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media, told Newsmax on Monday that last week’s "dismal" jobs report that spurred this market "slowdown" was the culmination an economy that has been propped up by misleading numbers.
Forbes joined economist Peter Schiff on "Rob Schmitt Tonight" to analyze Monday’s bloodbath in the stock market.
"What you're seeing with the economy is a slowdown. The economy has not been as good as the numbers have portrayed," Forbes said. "You look at that jobs report; most new jobs have come from the government or businesses related to the government. In the past year, 500,000 full-time jobs have been eliminated; 550,000 part-time jobs have been created. So that jobs report paints a very dismal picture when you actually look at the innards of it.
"So yes, we're heading into headwinds. And the question is, what props can the government pull out to get them through the election," Forbes added.
Schiff, however, said that the economy is in a recession and has been year to date.
"[Y]ou showed the graphic of a 4.3% unemployment rate; that's a lie. The U-6 rate is 7.8%," Schiff said. "And for the 52 years going backwards from 1994, there wasn't a single year where the unemployment rate ended as high as the unemployment rate is right now. So it's a lie to say that we have low unemployment."
The U-6 rate is a broad measure of unemployment that includes discouraged and underemployed workers as well as those who are part-time for economic reasons.
"We have high unemployment, we have a weak labor market but we also have inflation. And that is the big problem that the markets are going to be grappling with," Schiff added. "Because they're now starting to price out a soft landing, because we're already in recession. We've been in recession all year, probably for a good part of last year. They will eventually officially acknowledge it.
"But when the fed cuts rates … they're going to reignite inflation. So they're not going to stimulate the economy; they're going to stimulate inflation," Schiff said. "And Americans are going to have the worst of both. They're going to have a deeper recession but even more inflation. It's going to be stagflation that would make Jimmy Carter blush."
About NEWSMAX TV:
NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!
- Find Newsmax channel in your home via cable and satellite systems – More Info Here
- Watch Newsmax+ on your home TV app or smartphone and watch it anywhere! Try it for FREE -- See More Here: NewsmaxPlus.com
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.