Publications
Partners
Washington - The White House on Monday trimmed its outlook for US economic growth in 2013 and 2014, citing "serious headwinds" from European austerity measures and a slowdown in China, as well as across-the-board budget sequester cuts at home.
The mid-session budget and economic update highlighted the lingering impact of the recession that has stymied President Barack Obama's economic agenda.
In the review, the White House said it expected gross domestic product (GDP) to rise 2.0% this year and 3.1% next year - less than the 2.3% and 3.2% forecast in Obama's budget of April 10.
The unemployment rate has fallen somewhat over the past six months but remains stubbornly high - at about 7.5%, because of what the Obama administration says is the lingering impact of the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Ahead of tough negotiations with Congress on spending cuts and raising the US debt limit, the White House slashed its estimate of the current year's fiscal deficit to $759bn, or 4.7% of GDP, from its April forecast of $973bn.
Republicans have been focusing on deficit reduction and spending cuts, while Obama has argued for programmes to spur jobs, financed in part by higher taxes on the wealthy.
White House budget director Sylvia Mathews Burwell said in a statement that the report shows Obama's budget "achieves the core goal of fiscal sustainability by putting federal debt on a declining path as a share of the economy".
Congress, however, is not expected to pass Obama's budget this year.
