Most Accurate Forecasters Of US Economy Are Outside US, And The Best Is A Frenchman Who Works For Market Securities - Kyte Group, Bloomberg News Says

The best forecasters of the U.S. economy are outside the U.S., according to an analysis by Bloomberg News released Friday.

Bloomberg said five of the most accurate forecasters of the American economy for the two years ended in December 2012 are outside the U.S. At the top of the list is Christophe Barraud, a 26-year-old French analyst who works for Market Securities Paris LLP and has never been to the U.S.

“I think that being in France helps me be more objective,” Barraud told the news service, adding that he’s more likely to get forecasts about the French economy wrong and has “underestimated French economic fundamentals,” reflecting his countrymen’s pessimism about their own economy.

“On the U.S., I have no bias," Barraud, who earned a doctorate in economics from the University of Paris-Dauphine, said.

Other forecasters whose predictions about the U.S. economy exceed those of their peers are Bernd Weidensteiner and Christoph Balz of Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt, Gregorio De Felice of Intesa Sanapolo SpA in Milan, Rudolf Besch and Marina Luetje of DekaBank in Frankfurt and Thomas Lam of OSK-DMG in Singapore.