U.S.
President
Joe
Biden
gives
a
thumbs
up
as
he
walks
with
first
lady
Jill
Biden
to
Marine
One
on
the
South
Lawn
of
the
White
House
July
14,
2023
in
Washington,
DC.
Drew
Angerer
|
Getty
Images
WASHINGTON
—
Morgan
Stanley
is
crediting
President
Joe
Biden’s
economic
policies
with
driving
an
unexpected
surge
in
the
U.S.
economy
that
is
so
significant
that
the
bank
was
forced
to
make
a
“sizable
upward
revision”
to
its
estimates
for
U.S.
gross
domestic
product.
Biden’s
Infrastructure
Investment
and
Jobs
Act
is
“driving
a
boom
in
large-scale
infrastructure,”
wrote
Ellen
Zentner,
chief
U.S.
economist
for
Morgan
Stanley,
in
a
research
note
released
Thursday.
In
addition
to
infrastructure,
“manufacturing
construction
has
shown
broad
strength,”
she
wrote.
As
a
result
of
these
unexpected
swells,
Morgan
Stanley
now
projects
1.9%
GDP
growth
for
the
first
half
of
this
year.
That’s
nearly
four
times
higher
than
the
bank’s
previous
forecast
of
0.5%.
“The
economy
in
the
first
half
of
the
year
is
growing
much
stronger
than
we
had
anticipated,
putting
a
more
comfortable
cushion
under
our
long-held
soft
landing
view,”
Zentner
wrote.
The
analysts
also
doubled
their
original
estimate
for
GDP
growth
in
the
fourth
quarter,
to
1.3%
from
0.6%.
Looking
into
next
year,
they
raised
their
forecast
for
real
GDP
in
2024
by
a
tenth
of
a
percent,
to
1.4%.
“The
narrative
behind
the
numbers
tells
the
story
of
industrial
strength
in
the
U.S,”
Zentner
wrote.
Morgan
Stanley’s
revision
came
at
a
pivotal
time
for
the
Biden
White
House.
The
president
has
spent
the
summer
crisscrossing
the
country,
touting
his
economic
achievements.
“Together
we
are
transforming
the
country,
not
just
through
jobs,
not
just
through
manufacturing,
but
also
by
rebuilding
our
infrastructure,”
Biden
said
Thursday
during
a
visit
to
a
Philadelphia
shipyard.
The
White
House
has
dubbed
this
brick-and-mortar
economic
growth
formula
“Bidenomics,”
a
phrase
originally
used
by
Republicans
to
jab
the
president,
who
co-opted
the
term
as
a
badge
of
honor.
In
addition
to
his
legacy,
Biden
has
also
staked
his
2024
reelection
bid
on
Bidenomics,
betting
that
strong
economic
growth
and
a
campaign
built
around
kitchen
table
issues
will
ultimately
drown
out
Republicans’
culture
war
outrage.
This
could
be
a
risky
wager,
however.
The
latest
CNBC
All-America
Economic
Survey,
released
Thursday,
found
that
just
37%
of
respondents
approved
of
Biden’s
handling
of
the
economy,
while
58%
disapproved.
Only
20%
of
Americans
agreed
that
the
economy
was
excellent
or
good,
while
a
whopping
79%
said
it
was
just
fair
or
poor,
CNBC’s
poll
found.
Republicans
have
seized
on
voters’
economic
pessimism
to
argue
that
Biden
is
ignoring
everyday
Americans’
ongoing
challenges
with
high
interest
rates
and
inflation
that
has
fallen
some,
but
still
sits
above
pre-pandemic
levels.
“Bidenomics
is
about
blind
faith
in
government
spending
and
regulation,”
GOP
House
Speaker
Kevin
McCarthy
said
in
a
statement
Friday.
“It’s
an
economic
disaster
where
government
causes
decades-high
inflation,
high
gas
prices,
lower
paychecks
and
crippling
uncertainty
that
leaves
America
worse
off.”
With
16
months
to
go
before
Americans
cast
their
ballots
for
president,
Biden’s
political
fortunes,
for
the
moment,
appear
to
be
improving
along
with
the
economy.
“This
report
confirms
what
we’ve
long
said:
Our
strong
and
resilient
economy
is
Bidenomics
in
action,”
White
House
assistant
press
secretary
Mike
Kikukawa
said
in
an
email
to
CNBC.
“The
president’s
economic
agenda
is
spurring
investments
in
manufacturing
and
infrastructure
that
are
creating
jobs
and
supporting
workers.”
