Greenspan Cites Oil's Restraints; Economy Otherwise Strengthens, He Says
PUBLISHED CORRECTIONS: The name of the Neiman Marcus department store chain was misspelled in a Sept. 9 Business article. (Published 9/28/04)</br></br>Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said yesterday that U.S. economic growth picked up in recent weeks but is still restrained by high oil prices.</br></br>Greenspan, appearing before the House Budget Committee, said the spring surge in energy prices weakened the economy more than analysts had expected. He suggested that uncertainty about oil prices continues to cloud the economic outlook.</br></br>"If it weren't for the oil price spike, I would be very optimistic about where the economy is going," Greenspan said in remarks that contrasted with a more upbeat assessment in July, when he spoke of a quickening economic expansion.</br></br>Greenspan also repeated his call for Congress to restrain the growth of the federal budget deficit. He said failure to do so could cause inflation, interest rates and government debt payments to rise to economically damaging levels in coming decades.