Recession of 1949

US unemployment rate, 1948–1955

The Recession of 1949 was a downturn in the United States lasting for 11 months. According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, the recession began in November 1948 and lasted until October 1949.^[1]

The 1949 recession was a brief economic downturn; forecasters of the time expected much worse, perhaps influenced by the poor economy in their recent lifetime.^[2] The recession began shortly after President Truman's "Fair Deal" economic reforms. The recession also followed a period of monetary tightening by the Federal Reserve.^[3]

The GDP of the U.S.[]

During this recession, the Gross domestic product of the United States fell 1.7 percent. In October 1949, the unemployment rate reached its peak for the cycle of 7.9 percent.^[4]

Main causes of the recession[]

Many^[who?] regard the aftermath of the end of World War II to be the main cause of the recession. According to C. A. Blyth "the most important cause of 1948-1949 recession was substantial fall in the fixed investments".^[5]

The severity of this recession[]

Maximum unemployment was about 7.9%. Change in Gross National Product GNP reduced by up to -1.5%. Department store sales fell 22%. The wholesale price and cost of living indexes fell 12 and 5 points.^[6]

References[]

Further reading[]

• Friedman, Milton; Schwartz, Anna J. (1993) [1963]. A Monetary History of the United States, 1867–1960. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 604–610. ISBN 978-0691003542.
• Meltzer, Allan H. (2003). A History of the Federal Reserve – Volume 1: 1913–1951. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 667–681. ISBN 978-0226520001.
• Bremner, Robert P. (2004). Chairman of the Fed: William McChesney Martin Jr. and the Creation of the American Financial System. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press. pp. 69–72. ISBN 978-0300105087.