April 2021 Economic Monitor

It is easy not to see the wood for the trees. We can feel the recovery but how strong is it? The numbers show that we are experiencing the strongest quarter-over-quarter growth in the economy at 8% right now, in Q2 2021 (except the wild swings last year of course). 2021 is expected to be a very strong year with U.S. GDP growing at 6.1%. 

US initial public offerings have exploded this year, driven by the popularity of Spacs. Home prices have been growing at the fastest rate since the great recession driven by the low interest rates and shift to working from home. Unemployment continues to work its way down. It is currently at 6% and is expected to recline to 5% by the end of 2021 and to 4% in 2022.

Art Baker
Author: Art Baker

Art Baker is a corporate development and finance professional. In his prior roles, he was responsible for launching new business lines such as Maven and GIG car share, developing autonomous car strategy at AAA and leading financial evaluation of new products at OnStar. Art was an investment banker at RBC Capital Markets from 2006 to 2013. Art’s areas of expertise include strategy, M&A, operational finance, budgeting, forecasting, capital markets, negotiations and new business development. He is an active member of professional community as he teaches at Investment Banking Institute and served the board of Financial Executives International. Art possesses a Bachelor of Science in Business from Oklahoma City University, an Ph.D. Degree in Economics from Moscow State University, Russia, and an MBA from the University of Toronto, Canada. He passed all three levels of the CFA Program.