Slowdown not that much of an exaggeration

Chairman Ben Bernanke recently appeared to play down the need for more action from the Fed, arguing that the extent of the US slowdown may have been "exaggerated". Looking at the pattern of the monthly gains in employment over the past three years, there does appear to be something amiss, with a sharp drop off between March and May in every year. However, there is a strong case to be made that the recent summer swoons are real and the similar timing is just a coincidence.