Amazon founder Jeff Bezos warns the US economy may slump into a recession

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Jeff Bezos has warned the US economy may be headed for a recession and recommended Americans brace for a painful downturn.

Amazon’s billionaire founder and executive chairman retweeted a CNBC clip of Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon on Tuesday. In it, the bank chief advised business owners to be cautious and prepare for more market volatility as growth headwinds mount.

“Yep, the probabilities in this economy tell you to batten down the hatches,” Bezos tweeted in response.

The central bank’s goal is to bring down inflation, which surged to a 40-year high of 9.1% in June and remained above 8% in September.

The Fed has hiked interest rates from virtually zero in March to a range of 3% and 3.25% today, and signaled they could approach 5% next year. Higher rates encourage consumers to save rather than spend or invest and make borrowing more expensive, so they typically reduce aggregate demand and relieve upward pressure on prices.

Bezos is well placed to comment on the US economy, given Amazon is one of the country’s biggest employers with 1.5 million full-time and part-time workers as of June 30.

The online retailer and cloud-computing titan also commands a $1.2 trillion market capitalization and generated $470 billion in net sales last year, making it a key player in the stock market and the economy.

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