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Hot Topics: 2020 Economic Recession: Home

What is the Issue?

crisis written on a typewriter

Due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the World Bank predicts the global economy will shrink by 5.2% (Global Economic Prospects). While the National Bureau for Economic Research has found that the US economy is officially in a recession with the economy drastically changing course in March of 2020 (It's Official: U.S. Economy Is In A Recession).  The number of job losses for March and April of 2020 was more than the number of jobs created in the last nine years(U.S. Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy). Second Quarter USA GDP (Gross Domestic Product) for 2020 decreased an at annual rate of 32.9 % (Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2nd Quarter GDP News Release), while for the same period EU (or the Eurozone) saw their GDP decline by 12.1% (DW, Eurozone drops 12.1% in record pandemic plunge).

Places to Start

  • OECD COVID-19 - The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development has a coronavirus page on their website with reports about the pandemic's impact on the global economy. 
  • US Federal Reserve Economic Outlook and Monetary Policy- The May 21 2020 report outlines the depth of the recession brought about by the pandemic as well as its swift appearance. 
  • Nexis Uni- a legal and current events database, search this for newspaper articles from around the world about the impact the pandemic has had on the economy at a local, national, regional and global level. 

Recession 2020 and the Banking Sector

  • The Volcker Rule- This limits how much investment and the type of investment that can be made by the banking sector in securities (stocks, bonds, etc.)
  • In June 2020, the Federal Reserve stopped stock buybacks by banks in response to liquidity concerns. 

What is a Recession?

"A recession is a downturn in the business cycle that occurs when the real gross domestic product (GDP)—the total output of goods and services produced by the U.S. population—declines for at least two consecutive quarters, or six months. Recessions are usually characterized by a general decrease in output, income, employment, and trade lasting from six months to a year." (Gale Encyclopedia of US History).

The Economy vs. The Stock Market

In some ways this recession is different than the 2008-9 financial crises. This recession has seen mass unemployment, supply chain issues, as well as disruptions to total industries (travel, tourism, etc.) however the stock market remains profitable though volatile.

Librarian

Maine and the 2020 Recession

5729 Fogler Library · University of Maine · Orono, ME 04469-5729 ; (207) 581-1673

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