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Economic Report of the President 1994 - The American Presidency ...

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Chart 2-1 Recovery Pattern <strong>of</strong> Nonfarm Payroll EmploymentEmployment growth in this recovery has been much weaker than in <strong>the</strong> averagepostwar recovery.Index, trough=100110108 -Average Postwar Recovery104Current Recovery10098I-4 -2 T 2 4 6 8 10Quarters from TroughNote: "Average" includes all recoveries from 1954 to 1982, except 1980. <strong>The</strong> trough quarter for <strong>the</strong>current recovery is first quarter 1991.Sources: Department <strong>of</strong> Labor and National Bureau <strong>of</strong> <strong>Economic</strong> Research.<strong>the</strong> whole defense sector. For example, total defense-related jobsare projected to number 4.5 million by 1997, down from 7.2 millionjobs in 1987. In a purely arithmetical sense, reduced defensespending subtracted roughly 0.5 percentage point <strong>of</strong>f <strong>the</strong> real GDPgrowth rate in 1993. Moreover, <strong>the</strong> defense cutbacks have had afur<strong>the</strong>r adverse impact on aggregate demand through <strong>the</strong> expendituremultiplier. Moving resources out <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> defense sector frees<strong>the</strong>m up for use in <strong>the</strong> production <strong>of</strong> consumption and investmentgoods and services, improving living standards. But this is a longerterm effect. <strong>The</strong> conversion process takes time, and although <strong>the</strong>defense scaledown is not as large relative to <strong>the</strong> size <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> economyas it was at <strong>the</strong> end <strong>of</strong> several wars, reconversion will causepainful dislocations in <strong>the</strong> short run.WEAK FOREIGN ECONOMIESWeak economic performance in <strong>the</strong> rest <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> industrializedworld over <strong>the</strong> past few years has also taken a toll on <strong>the</strong> U.S.economy by slowing export growth. <strong>The</strong> period 1991-93 will godown in history as <strong>the</strong> worst for economic performance in foreignindustrial countries since at least 1960. During this 3-year period,57

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