US President Joe Biden said on Monday that his country would not experience a recession, although growth figures to be released later this week could show the economy has contracted for a second consecutive quarter.

"I think we won't have a recession," he told reporters.

Citing the good employment figures, the president said he hoped for a soft landing, where the country “would go from this rapid growth to stable growth”.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also expressed optimism that the United States will manage to avoid a recession in the coming months due to the good health of the job market and consumption.

An economic slowdown seems inevitable, but a recession “is simply not compatible with the type of labor market that we see”, she said on July 19.

Second-quarter US gross domestic product (GDP) growth will be released on July 28.

A recession is defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

More details to come...