(Smart Money) — The U.S. economy will expand at a solid pace this year and next as consumers, confident that the recession is now behind them, raise spending again, a panel of economists said in a survey released Monday. The 46 economists surveyed in the National Association for Business Economics, or NABE, report between April 27 and May 7 predicted U.S. gross domestic product would expand by 3.2% in 2010 and 2011. That’s a tad higher than the 3.1% growth predicted for both years in the Feb. 10 survey.
