By One Measure, This Recovery Is 10 Times Faster Than The One After The Great Recession—But There’s A Catch
The early months of the coronavirus pandemic saw the U.S. economy plunge at its fastest rate in history. Over a two-month period, the jobless rate shot up from 3.5% in February 2020 to 14.7% in April—its highest level since 1940—while second-quarter GDP declined 32.9% on an annualized basis. During this period the Congressional Budget Office forecast that the unemployment rate would remain above double digits for more than six quarters, ending 2021 at 10.1%. All signs pointed to the U.S. sinking into the worst downturn since the Great Depression, or maybe even into another depression. But the bleakest outlooks didn’t come to pass. Despite a lingering pandemic and mass joblessness, the recent economic recovery is among the fastest in American history—at least on paper. Read more at Fortune.
