{"id":118196,"date":"2021-03-03T15:23:51","date_gmt":"2021-03-03T20:23:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=118196"},"modified":"2021-04-12T13:45:41","modified_gmt":"2021-04-12T17:45:41","slug":"historic-recovery-ahead-for-u-s-economy-in-2021-predicts-ucf-economist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/historic-recovery-ahead-for-u-s-economy-in-2021-predicts-ucf-economist\/","title":{"rendered":"Historic Recovery Ahead for U.S. Economy in 2021, Predicts UCF Economist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fueled by a release of pent-up economic demand, unemployment will decline and Americans will spend more money through 2021, says Sean Snaith, renowned economist and director 色花堂\u2019s Institute for Economic Forecasting.<\/p>\n

While consumer spending shrank by 3.9 percent in 2020 amid the recession, the institute\u2019s first-quarter U.S. forecast predicts spending will accelerate to an increase of 5.4 percent this year and slow to an increase of 2.6 percent by 2024. CARES Act funding and the COVID-19 vaccine are quelling fear of the pandemic, prompting consumers to open their wallets and businesses to hire new employees. Snaith maintains a positive outlook on the months ahead, but it could take until 2022 for unemployment to fall back to pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsumers are powering this recovery, and as the effects of the pandemic fade, consumer confidence will rise in tow.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cJob growth will help ease the damage to the labor market from the lockdown, but the road to recovery will take at least another year,\u201d Snaith says. \u201cConsumers are powering this recovery, and as the effects of the pandemic fade, consumer confidence will rise in tow.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the report, Snaith predicts:<\/div>\n