WASHINGTON (AP) - President Barack Obama on Saturday tempered excitement about a growing economy with a sober outlook that more people will lose their jobs. He called that a heartbreaking reality and cautioned that even a burst of upbeat news "does not mean there won't be difficult days ahead."
Obama's straddle served to set expectations for a nation emerging from recession but anxious for an economic security that has not nearly returned.
The good news of the week: The economy is on the rise for the first time in more than a year. From July through September the economy grew by 3.5 percent, the strongest uptick in two years. Obama called the development no cause for celebration, but a welcome sign after so many months of distressing news.
"While we have a long way to go before we return to prosperity, and there will undoubtedly be ups and downs along the road, it's also true that we've come a long way," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address. "It is easy to forget that it was only several months ago that the economy was shrinking rapidly and many economists feared another Great Depression."
Yet the economic indicator that matters most to the majority of families - stable, solid employment - is still lagging.