Yellen says the economy is not in a recession despite GDP slump

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday the U.S. economy is in a state of transition, not recession, despite two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

Recession, Yellen insisted, is a “broad-based weakening of our economy” that includes substantial layoffs, business closures, strains in household finances and a slowdown in private sector activity.

“That is not what we are seeing right now,” she said during an afternoon news conference at the Treasury. “When you look at the economy, job creation is continuing, household finances remain strong, consumers are spending and businesses are growing.”

Those comments, though, came on the same day that the Commerce Department’s Bureau of…