JPMorgan’s Dimon Says Economic Recovery Is a Long Way From Over

(Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon doesn’t see any reason the nine-year economic recovery will end soon.

"We’re probably in the sixth inning,” Dimon said Friday at an investor conference in New York. "It’s very possible you’re going to see stronger growth in the U.S."

While some market observers have expressed concern that the economic recovery is getting stale after almost a decade, the head of the largest U.S. bank said that’s not the way to view it. In previous cycles, the economy has seen 40 percent recoveries in less than the nine years it’s taken the U.S. to grow 20 percent this time around, Dimon said.

“It’s just that it’s taking a little bit longer and mostly because of bad policy,” he said. Some of the policy mistakes on taxes and regulation are now being fixed, he said.

Read more: Dimon says Volcker Rule changes will lower costs

Dimon’s comments came after economic data Friday showed U.S. hiring rose more than forecast in May, wages picked up and the unemployment rate matched the lowest in almost five decades. That could indicate the strong labor market will keep powering economic growth.

"I’ve heard people say, well, it’s looking like 2007. Completely untrue," he said. “There’s much less leverage in the system. The banks are much better capitalized. "

That’s not to say that "badly thought-through" trade policy won’t have its effects, he said. Global trade tensions escalated this week after Donald Trump’s administration pushed ahead with tariffs on imports from its key trading partners.

"This trade stuff is a negative," Dimon said. "It’s going to hurt sentiment. It’s not strategic."

--With assistance from William Mathis.

To contact the reporter on this story: Michelle F. Davis in Mexico City at mdavis194@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael J. Moore at mmoore55@bloomberg.net

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