David Rosenberg

On Aug. 5, David Rosenberg, chief economist and strategist at Gluskin Sheff & Associates, warned on Bloomberg Radio of a 99 percent chance of recession in the U.S. He backed away from this on Jan. 9 on Bloomberg Television, but said this year will be more challenging for the U.S. than the last. The economy "is still fragile and this recovery is quite spotty," he said, warning of "headwinds" from overseas including a European recession and a possible slowdown in China. "I see barely more than 1 percent growth in 2012," he added in a Jan. 12 email, "so yet another year of economic deceleration."

(Left, job seekers listen to instructions at a job fair for medical professionals in Manhattan.)

Photograph by Ashley Gilbertson / VII Network