Greenspan fears recession - report

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan warned Monday that the economy may fall into recession by the end of 2007, according to a published report.

Greenspan told a business conference that it's difficult to forecast the timing of recessions but that it was "possible" that one could occur later this year, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Former Fed chief Alan Greenspan

The former Fed chief, who spoke to the conference by satellite link, said the U.S. economy has been growing since 2001 and that the economy cycle is nearing an end, according to the newspaper.

"When you get this far away from a recession, invariably forces build up for the next recession, and indeed we are beginning to see that sign, for example in the U.S., profit margins ... have begun to stabilize, which is an early sign we are in the later stages of a cycle," the Journal reported him as saying.

Greenspan also said the global economy looks to be stable and that both the U.S. and world economies are more resilient than before, according to the report.

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