Fed's Parry sees 'respectable positive' U.S. growth rate by H2

SACRAMENTO, CA (AFX) - The U.S. economy should see a "respectable positive rate" of growth in the second half of the year, according to Robert Parry, the president of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank.	    "If everything goes right, we'll continue to see the economy expand - not at the blazing rates we've seen in recent years - but still at a respectable positive rate by sometime in the latter half of this year," Parry said in a speech prepared for delivery to Sacremento Rotary Club.	    "No doubt, the road now and immediately ahead may be rocky, given the uncertainties in the economy and financial markets," Parry said.	    But "the underlying situation for the U.S. economy still has a lot going for it."	    Despite the slowdown in the second half of last year, producitivy growth averaged 2.5 pct, he noted.	    "It implies that the supply side of the economy is still expanding rapidly."	    Parry said that California will be "hit harder" by the economic slowdown, given the weakness in the technology sector and the increases in energy prices.	    The decline in household wealth associated with the drop with the stock market will also be greater in California than the rest of the U.S., he added. 

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