A recession is already a reality for four states in the United States and three others are at risk for further decline, Bloomberg reported.
According to data from Moody’s Analytics, Alaska, North Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming are currently in a recession, which is generally defined as negative economic growth occurring in two consecutive quarters of the year.
"Seven of the 50 U.S. states have had downturns in economic activity over the final three months of the last year," the article states. "Louisiana, New Mexico, and Oklahoma are all at risk for a recession."
According to Bloomberg, the common denominator among the states in recession is their high concentrations of energy companies.
"The impetus for weakening regional economies is the huge fall in energy prices and other commodities prices, which is taking a tremendous toll," said Joseph, LaVorgna, the chief economist at Deutsche Bank Securites Inc. in New York. "If the consumer were to falter for any reason, that would be a big problem."
The odds of a recession occurring in the United States in the next year has doubled—rising to 20 percent, according to Bloomberg economists.