17. Post World War II recession and recovery
Unlike Europe, which found its cities and infrastructure devastated after the Second World War, the United States was possessed of an economy running at full employment, modernized factories, and a shipping and transportation network unlike any ever seen before. But it was entirely designed for war production, and converting it to commercial production was problematic. The rest of the world would continue to need American raw materials and finished products, particularly heavy machinery, to rebuild and to feed its people. The greatest issue facing the United States, economically speaking, was employing and housing its returning veterans. War production ceased almost immediately. Workers were laid off as manufacturers retooled.
Before the war was over, with the defeat of Japan a foregone conclusion among many, the American economy shifted into a recession as government spending dropped rapidly. Unemployment for the most part remained low, in part because many returning veterans either enrolled in school under the GI Bill or opted to join what was euphemistically called the 52-20 club, receiving $20 per week ($280 today) for a full year without the requirement of searching for work. Rationing of most commodities remained in place for a time (in the UK rationing of some items continued until the 1960s). A complete economic collapse in post-war Europe was avoided through the implementation of the Marshall Plan, which supported the reconstruction of the war-torn continent.