ClaimsJeremy Grantham

“It still seems a safe bet that seven lean years await us.”

Jeremy Grantham, GMO letter author October 2009 Jeremy Grantham GMO letter 3Q 2009: Just Desserts and Markets Being Silly Again (Scribd)

This quote could not be matched word for word to the source page.

Prediction Economics and markets

In October 2009, Grantham wrote that it still seemed a safe bet that seven lean years lay ahead.

Unresolvable The public record could not settle it.

Prediction: Statements about events outside the person's control, checked once they fell due: did they come true?

Said for an organisation they lead or work for; it counts on both records.

What would count as true or false

Judged at the end of 2016, treating 'seven lean years' as roughly 2010-2016 being a period of below-normal economic growth in the US and developed world (relative to their pre-2008 long-run trend, about 3% a year real GDP growth for the US). True: average annual real GDP growth over 2010-2016 in the US and the developed economies broadly was clearly below the pre-2008 long-run trend, with most individual years below trend. Mostly true: the period was lean overall but one or two years or one major economy was near or above trend. Mixed: roughly half the years, or half the major developed economies, were lean. Mostly false: only a short part of the period (a few years) was below trend. False: growth over 2010-2016 was at or above the pre-2008 long-run trend.

Set before the research began.

Evidence (3)

  1. E1 Real Gross Domestic Product FRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis)

    “2016: 1.8 | Percent Change from Preceding Period, Not Seasonally Adjusted | Annual”
  2. E2 Trésor-Economics No. 169 (April 2016), "Potential growth in the United States: is the weakness here to stay?" Direction générale du Trésor (French Treasury) · April 2016

    “Most organisations estimate U.S. potential growth at 1.5-2.0% in 2016, down from a pre-crisis average of 2.5%.”
  3. E3 Trésor-Economics No. 169 (April 2016), "Potential growth in the United States: is the weakness here to stay?" Direction générale du Trésor (French Treasury) · April 2016

    “In the United States, the financial crisis accelerated the decline in potential growth by about 0.7 points compared with 2003-2007.”

Reasoning

E2 gives US real GDP growth of 1.8% for 2016, below the roughly 3% pre-2008 trend, but that is only one of the seven years in the 2010-2016 window. E3 and E4 report that US potential growth estimates fell to 1.5-2.0% in 2016, down from a pre-crisis average of about 2.5%, but potential growth is not the realised growth the criteria require. No evidence covers average realised growth over 2010-2016 or the other developed economies, so the criteria cannot be applied.

Cite this claim

Jeremy Grantham, “In October 2009, Grantham wrote that it still seemed a safe bet that seven lean years lay ahead.” (said October 2009). Verdict: unresolvable. Reliability API, claim c_5b202c2ccd20, method 0.1.0+28da144b, dataset release v1.1.2. https://epistacklabs.com/claims/c_5b202c2ccd20

This claim is in dataset release v1.1.2, with the same verdict.

Reply to this claim

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More prediction claims by Jeremy Grantham

  1. Resolved false Prediction January 2023
    “we can conclude that the final low for this market might be well into 2024.”

    The final low of this bear market might come well into 2024.

  2. Mixed Prediction January 2023
    “near certainty it was a year ago, is much more likely than not.”

    A continued market decline of at least substantial proportions is much more likely than not.

  3. Mostly false Prediction January 2023
    “after a bloodbath is not unusual and may very well not outlive January.”

    The January 2023 rally may well not outlive January.

  4. Mostly true Prediction January 2023
    “may help to support the market for a few more months.”

    The Presidential Cycle's positive influence may help support the market for a few more months.

  5. Resolved true Prediction 31 August 2022
    “Each cycle is different and unique—but every historical parallel suggests that the worst is yet to come.”

    Grantham says historical parallels suggest the worst of the current market downturn is still to come.

All of them

Verdicts are made automatically; how verdicts are made.