Recovery could happen this year, but will likely be weak

Two new economic surveys offer a mixed bag for investors regarding the U.S. economy, but also present a plausible outlook for business conditions.

The first, the Blue Chip Economic Indicators (BCEI) newsletter, expects the economic recovery to start in the second half of 2009, Reuters reported. The second, a new Bloomberg News economists survey, sees a milder recovery than forecast earlier.

The BCEI newsletter sees U.S. GDP contracting 1.6 percent in Q2, then rising 0.5 percent in Q3, and 1.8 percent in Q4. For all of 2009, the newsletter expects the U.S. economy to contract 2.6 percent, followed by a 1.8 percent expansion in 2010.