WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The economy would likely suffer some impacts as certain U.S. states reimpose coronavirus-related restrictions, but imposing another nationwide shutdown would be “a big mistake,” White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Wednesday.
He added that he has seen has seen no evidence of a so-called double-dip recession as some financial analysts have suggested as more states reported record numbers of new infections. On Tuesday, U.S. confirmed cases topped 3 million.
“I don’t see it yet,” Kudlow told reporters at the White House, referring to any economic fallout as some of the country’s most populous states such as Florida, Texas and California saw cases surge and reimposed various measures aimed at mitigating the outbreak.
“I can’t rule it out. … We may see some spots, I won’t deny that,” he added.
Kudlow earlier told CNBC that another nationwide shutdown would harm businesses and Americans’ wellbeing.
“It really would be a big mistake,” he said in a separate interview with the television network. “To take a step like another shutdown … it would do more harm than good.”
(Reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Jonathan Oatis)
