Pedestrians walk past a furniture store

Pedestrians walk past a furniture store that is having a closing down sale in Los Angeles on April 06, 2009. The US recession could be "among the most severe" contractions since 1945, Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh said, adding that no sharp recovery was in sight in the coming quarters. The US economy shrank by 6.3 percent in the 2008 final quarter "and is on track to contract sharply again in the first quarter, which would put the current contraction among the most severe post-World War II recessions," Warsh said in a speech to investors in Washington. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP via Getty Images)