8. Before Covid 19 pandemic Trump had the American economy booming. US economy under Trump: Is it the greatest in history?
President Trump often says the US economy is on an historic high, perhaps the greatest it’s ever been.
Speaking at his State of the Union address in February, he reinforced those claims by hailing his pro-growth policies which he says have helped Americans with jobs and wages.
Reality Check verdict: It’s true the economy has been doing well – but there have been periods when it was even stronger.
And the trade war with China, rising tensions in the Middle East and fears over the health of the global economy have unsettled markets at various points, and led the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, to lower interest rates.
President Trump has repeatedly tweeted that the current US economy is the greatest in American history.
What do the figures show?
The annual rate of growth in GDP – the value of goods and services in the economy – has generally been strong.
For 2019, the data shows an annual average growth of 2.3%, ending the year at 2.1% for the fourth quarter.
This is significantly less than the 5.5% peak achieved in the second quarter of 2014 during the Obama presidency.
And if you go further back, there were times in the 1950s and 1960s when GDP growth was even higher.
“If you choose to look at the health of the economy based on GDP, Mr Trump’s claims are suspect when compared to the national economic boom of the post-War years,” says Megan Black, assistant professor of history at the London School of Economics.
Stock market soars… then wobbles
President Trump has also highlighted the rising value of US financial markets – in particular the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which follows the shares of 30 major US companies.
It’s true the Dow reached record highs under his administration. Mr Trump’s supporters argue that his corporation tax cuts along with his US-focused policies, his clampdown on bureaucracy and his promises of infrastructure investment have all helped.
The index was highly volatile at times during 2019, reflecting worries about the trade confrontation with China, and a gloomier outlook for the global economy.
But it’s begun 2020 by notching up more gains with investors apparently positive about growth prospects.
Jobs and wages
So, what’s happening with employment and wages?
In his State of the Union address, President Trump said unemployment was at its lowest for half a century. He also said that since his election, seven million more Americans were now on the employment roll.
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