The recession is over, economists say

The National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) declares that the turning point came in June 2009, making it the longest downturn since World War II. But, the group notes, the economy still hasn't returned to vigorous growth.

With the housing market still depressed, and the official unemployment rate near 10% and jobs growing very slowly, many economists are concerned about the possibility of the economy lapsing into another recession.

The December 2007-to-June 2009 recession is two months longer than the two previous longest postwar recessions, in 1973-75 and 1981-82. Between 1945 and 2001, there have been 10 recessions that on average lasted 10 months, according to the NBER.