Is this a V or a W?

"Is this a V or a W?"

No, this is not a question about the Volkswagen logo. It's a rhetorical question Michael Geoghegan, group chief executive of HSBC asked when he talked about the economic recovery the other day.

His answer?

"[I think] it's the latter. [If I'm right], we have to be very careful we don't grow the balance sheet so far before the recovery has come, only to write it back into the impairment line later on. I'm cautious about growing too fast... I think it's very premature to conclude that there won't be another problem at some point in the next year or so."

Stephen Roach, chairman of Margan Stanley Asia shared his view. He said that it is unlikely the world will be problem-free next year, as this recovery is not strong enough to support the economy. "In a weak recovery, you don't really have much of a cushion to keep the economies rolling in the event [of] some type of a shock," Roach said. "There's a possibility of a relapse at some point."

And how about billionaire investor George Soros?

"The US has a long way to go," he warned.

Investors, take heed.