Joe Biden continued to downplay recession fears during a virtual meeting with CEOs and labor leaders on Monday, insisting the economy is not in recession amid widespread inflation.

“We’re not going to be in a recession, in my view,” Biden said. “The unemployment rate is still one of the lowest we’ve had in history. It’s in the 3.6 percent area. We still find ourselves with people investing.”

“My hope is we go from this rapid growth to a steady growth. And so, we’ll see some coming down. But I don’t think we’re going to — God willing — I don’t think we’re going to see a recession,” he added.

On Thursday, the Commerce Department will release its second-quarter growth numbers, a highly anticipated report that could show the economy receding for a second consecutive quarter. If it shows that GDP has fallen again, the U.S. would be in the very definition of a recession.