If you take a look at any of the traditional indicators of how the economy’s performing, you’ll come away with one clear narrative: America’s economy is booming — the envy of other nations in a post-pandemic world ravaged by economic turmoil.
Here are a few statistics. The country’s unemployment rate, as of October, sits at 4.1%, indicating that a vast majority of those looking for a job can find one. It’s what economists call full employment.
Inflation, a nuisance on family budgets across the nation for the past four years, must be weighing down the economy, right? Nope. After peaking at 9.1% in June 2022, the annual price increase of goods and services is at 2.6% — a rate that a consensus of economists says indicates a healthy economy.
And the stock market, since President Joe Biden took office in 2021, has boomed. CNN reported last month that, at an annual growth rate of 14.1%, the stock market is performing better under Biden than it has since the dotcom boom of the 1990s under former President Bill Clinton.