Bush to sign $152 billion stimulus bill Wednesday

By Jeremy Pelofsky

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President George W. Bush said on Sunday he would sign a $152 billion package on Wednesday that is aimed at keeping the world's largest economy out of recession with tax rebates and business investment incentives.

Citing private-sector economists, Bush said he did not believe the U.S. economy was in recession despite an implosion in the housing market, a widening credit crunch and, for the first time in 53 months, a loss of jobs in January.

"I will be signing this bill Wednesday," Bush said in an interview on Fox News Sunday.

Asked whether he would consider further action if the economy continued to sputter, Bush said: "We just have to play it by ear."

Beyond prompting fears of a global ripple effect, the health of the U.S. economy has become a key campaign issue for Republican and Democratic candidates seeking to contest November's presidential election to succeed Bush.

U.S. economic growth slowed abruptly to 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter last year, following a surge of 4.9 percent in the third quarter, the U.S. government said.

The housing sector continued to soften. Pending sales of previously owned homes fell by 1.5 percent in December and were off a sharp 24 percent from a year ago, the National Association of Realtors said. Major retailers reported a slowdown in consumer spending.

Finance officials from the Group of Seven industrial nations said this weekend that while the U.S. economy was likely to escape a recession in 2008 and economic fundamentals remained "solid," far more work was needed to restore financial markets to good working order and safeguard global growth.