Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon sees small chance of recession this year, 50-50 next year

• Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon tells CNBC he thinks the chances of a U.S. economic recession are "15 percent this year, 50 percent next year."
• Solomon quickly followed his estimate with a caveat, saying he's "not good at predicting these things."

Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon told CNBC on Thursday he thinks the chances of a recession are steadily rising over the next two years.

"Fifteen percent this year, 50 percent next year," Solomon said on "Squawk Box" at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Solomon quickly followed by saying he's "not good at predicting these things."

A day earlier, Goldman economists a report saying the U.S. economy is less prone to recession than in the past. The economists think the current economy is better built to absorb the kind of shocks that would typically trigger negative growth.

"I wouldn't be tremendously surprised if this cycle ran longer than everyone expects," Solomon said. "Generally, we don't worry ourselves into a recession. There's really no precedent for that."

– CNBC's Jeff Cox contributed to this report.