US teeters on recession, eurozone could weather crisis

The US economy is teetering on the brink of recession but eurozone countries could pull through the global financial crisis without special measures, the OECD said on Thursday

The OECD slashed US growth estimates for the first half of this year, saying the latest data "suggest that the US economy is now essentially moving sideways, if not contracting outright."

The US economy was now expected to grow 0.1 percent in the first quarter, a sharp reduction from the 0.3 percent estimated in December, and to show zero growth in the second, a sudden halt compared with 0.4 percent given previously.

Despite the sharp downward revision, acting chief OECD economist Jorgen Elmeskov said in a statement "it may be premature to declare a recession" in the United States.

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