This is CBS, I Am The World, I'm John Batchler.

Small Business is the business of America.

Watching small business as we hear repeatedly from the major economists, the government

and Wall Street, the recession is here or not.

It looks like it's more here than not.

However, I welcome Jean Marx.

He's a small business columnist for the Guardian newspaper, UK and US edition.

I recommend both editions, cover the world, as well as our hometown newspaper, the Philadelphia

Fien Quire and other distinguished publications, including The Hill.

And we go immediately to Jean's column in The Hill entitled The One Metric that Matters

When Predicting a Recession.

Jean, a very good evening to you.

Take us drumroll.

What are we watching for and what to tell us?

It could even two, Jean.

Hey, John, it's funny.

You and I have these conversations all the time.

We talk about all sorts of different metrics that are out there, the architectural, buildings,

index and, you know, home sales and confidence.

And, well, you know, also, consumer prices, construction data, all of that.

And we're trying to make sense of the economy.

You know, it's because of our conversations that we have.

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