Eight months into the so-called "Great Recession" in 2008, many economists were still debating whether the economy was in fact in a recession. In fact, recessions typically start when the economy is at its peak and has nowhere to go but down. Motor vehicle sales typically take a turn for the worse at least a few months before recessions officially begin. Workers in the auto industry and other supply-chain roles see the signs of a slowdown becoming a downturn even earlier. Even though most analysts don't see major "imbalances" — or bubbles — in the real economy that would internally bring on a recession, every recession is a little different.

Source: CNN January 02, 2019 11:37 UTC