Why is the US slowing down when the rest of the world is speeding up?

Japan grew at an annual rate of 4% in the first half of 2013. The Chinese PMI came in at 51.4, ahead of expectations, and they reported that industrial production showed the best growth in 18 months. Spain reported positive Q3 GDP and Greece as well, exceeding forecasts, due to strong exports. Ireland reported the 16th month of declining unemployment, which is now 13.2%. Important: It should be noted that Ireland's unemployment rate is reported on a U-6 basis, which includes part-time and discouraged workers. Our U-6 rate is 13.6%, so Ireland's unemployment rate is now below that of the US.


In light of the good world news, why is the US slowing down? I suppose it is because of Obamacare. Businesses don't really know the full implications of the law and are holding back on hiring and switching people from full- to part- time. It will take awhile to sort all of this out. I attended a presentation on the implications of Obamacare for Massachusetts organized by the Federation of Small Businesses on Wednesday. The presentation was given by people from MassHealth and an independent benefits specialist. The 37 business represented there were confused, nervous and a little scared. The benefits specialists said that many of his clients in the less-than-50-employee size were opting for salary in lieu of health care. (There is no penalty or fines for small businesses that don't offer health care.) That is, they are increasing salaries by the current cost of health insurance and cancelling their group plans