Biden's labor secretary is 'not sold' on the idea that we're heading towards a recession

• Right now, there's a lot of worry about the country tipping into yet another recession.

• But Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh isn't sold on the idea that we're headed towards one.

• "We're in a very interesting economy," Walsh said, and need to keep bringing down costs.

Wall Street — and consumers — are worried about a looming recession, especially as prices remain sky-high and some firms start layoffs. But not everyone, including Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, thinks we're on the verge of a downturn.

"I'm not sold that we're heading towards a recession," Walsh told Insider.

And right now, the labor market certainly isn't telling a story of cooling off. In June, the country added 372,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics — beating estimates from economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Earnings rose once again, and economic recovery is charging forward, with the country on track to reach February 2020 levels of jobs in just two months.

Of course, the economy is still dealing with a few curveballs. Gas prices — and prices for everything else — are still high.

"I'm sold that we're in a very interesting economy because of a pandemic, because of Putin's war in Ukraine driving up the gas prices around the globe," Walsh said. Those are all going to put "strains" on the economy at a global scale, according to Walsh.

However, Americans might see some relief at the pump and supermarket soon. A gallon of gas could fall below $4 at thousands of stations over the next few weeks, Insider's Ben Winck and Madison Hoff reported, and inflation may have finally peaked too.

"We're doing everything we can as an administration to bring down the inflationary costs that people have, and the pressures people face," Walsh said.

But recovery is booming, even if some firms are tightening their belts. New data this week from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that 4.3 million Americans quit their jobs in May, showing that workers aren't too scared about leaving their jobs for new ones. Meanwhile, layoffs still stayed low, meaning that employers want to hang on to their employees.

"I look out of my window and there's tour groups out here, walking to the Capitol and walking to the Washington monument every day. The hotels are full. People are out and about, so that's going to help our economy," Walsh said. "We just need to bring some of these costs down for people."

Read the original article on Business Insider