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I thought this is what he said all along, but now Greenspan wants to be perfectly clear. Or, at least, as clear as he ever is:

"By the end of the year, there is the possibility, but not the probability of the U.S. moving into recession," Greenspan said, according to notes taken by Bernard Key, a former economics professor at Tama University in Tokyo, who attended the event.

Greenspan's comments may be an attempt to clarify remarks he made on Feb. 26 that some traders say contributed to a global plunge in stocks the following day. He told an audience in Hong Kong three days ago that he couldn't rule out a recession this year in part because slowing growth in profit margins suggests the expansion might be winding down, the Associated Press reported.

His earlier statement was "probably misinterpreted, that's why we see a clarification today," said Glenn Maguire, chief Asia economist for Societe Generale SA in Hong Kong. "To hint at the possibility of a recession won't make Bernanke's life any easier," he added, referring to Greenspan's successor.

Posted by edelfenbein at March 1, 2007 9:25 AM