Economist says economic recovery starts this spring

YOUNGSTOWN — An economic recovery will begin this spring, but it’s going to take years to restore the damage, an economist said.

Michael Lewis, president of Free Market Inc. in Chicago, compared the pending recovery to getting over the common cold.

“You can take decongestants. You can take tea. You can listen to your friends and take a steam, but the reality is that it will take seven to 10 days to get over it,” Lewis told a gathering of about 130 Huntington Bank employees and clients Thursday at the Youngstown Club.

The recovery, however, the recovery will be measured in years, not days, because the system will need time to remove the large amount of debt that soured on consumers in recent years, Lewis said.

For more information, see Friday’s Vindicator or www.vindy.com.