Come January, the president will face the daunting challenge of sustainably reviving the US economy following what has been a most difficult year for American business. Four “D” challenges: deficits, debt, disease and defaults, threaten to derail the administration’s efforts to rebuild the economy in 2021.
Recovery Derailed
On the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic, the private sector of the US economy was performing exceedingly well. The American economy had recovered from the global financial crisis (GFC) with average annual GDP growth figures of 4{d07015fd705efad9473b4efea5456402f9c7fe2fb758f61ee5ca261a0142534a} (among the best in the world). Over the same decade, growth in private investment averaged 6{d07015fd705efad9473b4efea5456402f9c7fe2fb758f61ee5ca261a0142534a} per year, indicating that American business was funding long-term competitiveness by investing in capital goods and R&D. This was especially positive when compared with the 2000s, when private investment didn’t grow at all.