Washington:
US President Barack Obama on Tuesday said the steps taken by his administration to bail the economy out of recession had stopped an economic free fall, but there is a long way to go to return to normalcy.
"We still have a long way to go," Obama said at a GM Lordstown Assembly Plant in Ohio.
"But there's little debate that the decisions we have made and the steps we have taken have helped stop our economic free fall," he asserted.
Obama, who began his Presidential term this January by announcing massive bailout packages for failing companies and programmes to augment demand and create employment, pointed out that in some sectors the steps had helped the economy "turn the corner".
"Home sales are up, business investment is starting to stabilise, and for the first time in 18 months, we are seeing growth in manufacturing," he said.
But, he added, that these were small consolations when so many people were still out of work or had given up looking.
"It's going to take some time to achieve a complete recovery. But I will not rest until anyone looking for a job can find one - and I'm not talking about just any job; but good jobs," he said.
He said his administration was committed to strengthen and improve education from "cradle to a career" so that American children will be armed with the skills they need to compete with any worker, anywhere in the world.