U.S. Economic News
March 9, 2021
U.S. Economic Indicators
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index edged up to 95.8 in February as five components improved, four weakened, and one was unchanged. The uptick in the index was primarily driven by an increase in the share of small businesses reporting difficulties filling job openings and an improvement in expectations for future earnings. NFIB Report
U.S. News
The New York Times reports that the drop in international travel throughout 2020 resulted in an estimated loss of $1.3 trillion in global export revenues – more than 11 times the loss observed in 2009 as a result of the Great Recession. Though tourism in some areas is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2024, the exact pace of recovery in the global travel industry will have major impacts on carbon dioxide emissions, local and long-distance travel by car, and GDP growth, especially for tourism-dependent economies. NYT