ECONOMIC REVIEW AND OUTLOOK
The year 2023 began with many, if not most, economists calling
for recessions in the United States and abroad. High inflation,
restrictive central banks, and slowdowns in manufacturing and
housing all pointed to economic struggles ahead. However, the
"most anticipated recession in history" did not occur, at
least it hasn't yet.
In the U.S., consumers and businesses were able to draw on
excess savings, higher wages, and fiscal stimulus and, as the year
went on, recession calls were pushed out. U.S. GDP growth remained
unusually strong through 2023, even accelerating to a 4.9%
annualized pace in the third quarter.
Power to the People A big driver of growth in
the U.S. was the incredibly robust labor market. While the number
of job openings declined through 2023, there remained more jobs to
be filled than jobseekers to fill them. This gap provided workers
the power to demand more pay and better working conditions, and
they seized that
