Great Depression

As the booming 1920s drew to a close, the stock market crashed and gloom and doom followed into the next decade. Falling wages and prices, drop in business activity, and an increased high rate of employment sent nations into a major economic crisis. This economic downturn in the world economy is known as the Great Depression.

There were many underlying cause to the Great Depression, however the immediate cause was the 1929 stock market crash. As demand for products fell so did prices. With low prices companies had to cut workers wages and even layoff to stay competitive. This caused a high rate of unemployment and a slowdown in world business activity.

The US and other nations took force against depression by nationalizing and discouraging imports. Many nations lowered interest rates to stimulate the economy. Britain used there foreign colonies to trade among the empire and place tariffs on goods imported outside the empire. FDR issued the new deal which began the construction of many public works which would create many new jobs in the US. These reforms aided the economy, however depression still resided until the end of the 30s.

Following the 20s was the greatest economic slum in world history mainly because of falling wages and prices, drop in business activity, and an increased high rate of employment. Among this time of economic depression, reforms were issued, jobs were lost, and weak governments crumbled. The nations steps to improve the weak economy helped, however prosperity in the economy did not come until the start of WWII.