BEIJING (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is facing several grim quarters and is unlikely to rebound before 2010, according to an interview with a senior U.S. Treasury official carried in a weekend Chinese newspaper.

Under Secretary David McCormick, who is due to visit Shanghai this week, told China’s 21st Century Business Herald that credit conditions had weakened dramatically, dimming growth prospects.

“At present it is hard to predict how negative the impact will be, but in the next few quarters, the situation will be quite grim,” McCormick was quoted as saying. The newspaper translated his remarks into Chinese.

“We hope that we can finally stabilize the economy in 2009, and return to a growth trajectory in 2010,” he added. “But no matter what, doubtless now is a difficult period.”