Economy articles

Read these reports to understand the financial forces that affect daily American life. Discover how exports and imports impact US taxes and debt, plus learn about inflation and other economic indicators.

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Economy
Which sectors gained and lost jobs since 2004?

Health care has grown the most, accounting for one in seven jobs in 2020 and 7% of GDP.

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Economy
Gas and used car prices are over 20% above their levels last year

While overall inflation is not at Great Recession levels, prices for some items have risen sharply over the past year. Used car prices rose 10% from March, the largest one-month increase since data began in 1953.

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Economy
One year into the pandemic, restaurants, hotels, and recreation businesses have been the hardest hit in all but two states

Only Idaho and Utah have met or surpassed total employment levels from February 2020. Leisure and hospitality employment remains down by 52% in Washington, DC and 40% in Hawaii.

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Economy
American wealth is growing, even during the pandemic. So is wealth inequality.

The wealth of the middle 20% of income earners has grown 68% since 1990. However, middle class wealth is growing more slowly than overall wealth — middle class families went from owning 12% of wealth in 1990 to 7% in 2020.

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Economy
Leisure and hospitality employment increased in February, though still 20% lower than before the pandemic

The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows the unemployment rate was 6.2% in February.

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Economy
What percentage of Americans own stock?

In 2019, 53% of families were invested in the stock market. While publicly traded stock comprises 24% of the wealth of white, non-Hispanic families, it makes up 13% of Black wealth and 10% of Hispanic wealth.

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Economy
Government spending increased $2 trillion in 2020, but GDP fell by nearly a trillion

How did GDP fall despite a historic increase in federal government spending as a result of the 2020 stimulus? Part of it has to do with the highest saving rate since 1945.

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Economy
Which workers were most affected by job loss in 2020?

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that lower-wage workers — and particularly women in this group — have been more likely to lose their jobs during the pandemic compared to higher earners.

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Economy
Almost 40% of unemployed Americans have been out of work for more than six and a half months

While the unemployment rate dropped to 6.3% in January, many of those who remained unemployed were at the limit of regular state benefits.

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Economy
In 2020, the number of unionized workers dropped, while the share of union members increased

The share of employees in unions increased from 10.3% to 10.8% in 2019. Still, that’s less than half of the rate in 1983.

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