Even so, margins were down slightly from 9.5% in 2004 to 9.1% last year, and are expected to stay flat or dip slightly.

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Markets in Europe closed mostly flat after a morning dip in the wake of Hollande's election.

CNN: French President-elect Hollande casts doubt on austerity

So although some may be talking about the possibility of the economy going into a triple-dip recession, that will ignore the fact that the economy has been basically flat for about two-and-a-half years.

BBC: Is it time to start talking about a depression?