Fears related to the new coronavirus, or COVID-19, continue to grow in the U.S. and across the world, and with that comes economic uncertainty.
The future is “cloudy at best,” says Richard Branch, chief economist at Dodge Data & Analytics. Branch says that there is likely to be a recession in the second quarter of the year, possibly into the third, with effects on future construction starts still unclear. The Dodge Data & Analytics first quarter 2020 forecast predicts a 3% decline from 2019’s level, which Branch now calls “too optimistic.”