The U.S. economy grew last year at the fastest pace since Ronald Reagan’s presidency, bouncing back with resilience from 2020′s brief but devastating coronavirus recession.
Shoppers walk through Macy's in New York. The U.S. economy grew 5.7% in 2021, the fastest full-year clip since 1984, roaring back in the pandemic’s second year despite two new virus variants.
“It just goes to show that the U.S. economy has learned to adapt to the new variants and continues to produce,’’ said Beth Ann Bovino, chief economist at Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings. What’s more, the Federal Reserve made clear Wednesday that it plans to raise interest rates multiple times this year to battle the hottest inflation in nearly four decades. Those rate increases will make borrowing more expensive and perhaps slow the economy this year.
Arising from the 2020 pandemic recession, a healthy rebound had been expected for 2021. GDP had shrunk 3.4% in 2020, the steepest full-year drop since an 11.6% plunge in 1946, when the nation was demobilizing after World War II. The eruption of COVID in March 2020 had led authorities to order lockdowns and businesses to abruptly shut down or reduce hours. Employers slashed a staggering 22 million jobs. The economy sank into a deep recession.