Oecd Economic Surveys: United States 2000-2001 (O E C D Economic Surveys United States)

Annotation Following seven years of strong growth (averaging 4 per cent per year), the downturn in the US economy has been sharp and notable. Changes could first be observed in the Autumn of 2000, with the end of the ICT bubble. In Spring 2001 growth had ground to a halt, with further shrinkage in the manufacturing sector, and a decline in the purchase of durables, especially ICT related goods by consumers and businesses, and orders from abroad. Consumer confidence had dropped, and the final stage in the downturn followed the 11 September terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre, which may prove likely to push the economy into a recession. The projected GDP growth for the US is about 1% for the year. Despite this gloomy prognosis, the economic fundamentals of the economy remain sound, and with the ongoing structural reforms for the economy being likely to improve the economic performance in the coming years