"The White House on Monday lowered its projection for economic growth this year while issuing rosier estimates on unemployment and the federal budget deficit.
In its annual "mid-session review" budget update, the White House said it expects the economy to grow 2.4% this year, lower than the 2.6% it projected in April. The White House blamed the slower projection in part on the across-the-board federal spending cuts that began in March, as well as slower growth in China and Europe.
The White House's budget assumes the spending cuts will be canceled and replaced with a combination of measures that will reduce the deficit over many years. But Congress hasn't reached any agreement over how to replace the cuts, known as the sequester, which are set to continue cutting government spending for an additional eight years.
The federal budget deficit, according to the White House, will be $759 billion this year, narrower than the $973 billion it projected several months ago. That means the deficit would be equivalent to 4.7% of gross domestic product—a broad measure of economic output—in the fiscal year that ends Sept. 30, narrower than the 6% estimated previously.The White House estimated the unemployment rate for 2013 will average 7.5%, lower than the 7.7% rate the administration previously projected. The rate was 7.6% in June".
