Area Development
There's good news and bad: On a positive note, the economy shows modest growth despite the fallout from the housing crisis. On the negative side, job losses related to housing will probably worsen in the months ahead as builders and other businesses curtail plans and lay off staff or reduce new hiring. This is according to an early December report from the Kiplinger Business Resource Center. The center further forecasts that a recession will not occur, but the economy is likely to grow by about only 1 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007 and first three months of 2008.