Dwight D. Eisenhower, who served as the U.S. president from 1953-1961
The creation of the International Monetary Fund and the and the World Bank -- institutions designed to ensure an open, capitalist economy. American work force also changed significantly. number of workers providing services grew until it equaled and then surpassed the number who produced goods. 1956, a majority of the U.S. held white-colar rather than blue-colar jobs. A growing demand for single-family homes and the widespread ownership of cars led many Americans to migrate from central cities to suburbs. Shopping centers multiplied, rising from eight at the end of World War 2 to 3,840 in 1960. By the 1950s people were beginning to realize that the economy affects every person individually, whether they have a salary of fifty cents to ten million dollars. jobs and how much we earn doing them, the cost of the goods we buy, the price we pay to borrow money, 1950s the American economy was the strongest in the world. Baby boom, coupled with the GI Bill, laid the groundwork for newly developed communities and suburbs. World War 2. In 1950 the U.S. GNP was $284.6 billion, and by the end of the 1950s it had increased to $482.7 billion. When the economy was expanded so much many new jobs were opened up offering more options to make inventions for people and new activities. If not for the great expand in the economy we would be behind in all the inventions we have today. |
From 1950
Federal Spending: $42.56 billion Federal debt: $256.9 billion Consumer Price Index: 24.1 Unemployment: 5.9% Cost of first-class stamp: $0.03 The economy overall grew by 37% during the 1950s. At the end of the decade, the median AMerican Family had 30% more purchasing power than at the beginning. Inflation, which had wreaked havoc on the economy immediately after World War 2, was minimal, in part because of Eisenhower's persistent efforts to balance the federal budget. Except for a mild recession in 1954 and a more serious one in 1958, unemployment remained low, bottoming at less than 4.5% in the middle of the decade. Many factors came together to produce the Fifties boom. The GI Bill, which gave military veterans affordable access to a college education, added a productive pool of highly-educated employees to the work force at a time American businesses were willing to pay handsomely for engineering and management skills. Cheap oil from domestic wells helped keep the engines of industry running. Advances in science and technology spurred productivity. At the same time, potential competitors in Europe and Asia were still recovering from being bombed into smithereens during World War 2. |