WASHINGTON — National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Thursday that the Democratic-led government shutdown is costing the country about $15 billion a week and is expected to reduce gross domestic product growth by 1 to 1.5 percent in the fourth quarter.
Hassett spoke with White House reporters Thursday morning, hours after President Donald Trump signed a continuing resolution to reopen the government through the end of January. He outlined the economic impact of the country's record 43-day lockdown.
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“Our Council of Economic Advisers said it costs about $15 billion a week and is perhaps 1 to 1.5 percent of GDP when you factor in the multiplier effect,” Hassett said.
“They currently estimate that 60,000 non-government employees have lost their jobs due to the decline in economic output,” he added.
In response to another question, he said that ahead of this quarter, GDP growth is expected to reach 3-4 percent, which would be in line with the previous two quarters.
“Now you see about half of it,” he said.
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White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt marked On Wednesday, it was reported that the economic shutdown has led to a significant reduction in the federal government's ability to publish key economic reports, meaning October reports on employment and the consumer price index are unlikely to materialize.
Hassett said Thursday that “there is some indication” that the September jobs report could come out next week, but noted that the October unemployment rate will never be known.
“The October jobs report on wages will be able to be calculated, but the household survey has not been completed, so we will get something like half the jobs report,” he said.
“I think for everything else we can come up with the right numbers by looking back, but we will never know what the unemployment rate was in October because there was no household survey,” he added.
