| Online: | |
| Visits: | |
| Stories: |
| Story Views | |
| Now: | |
| Last Hour: | |
| Last 24 Hours: | |
| Total: | |
5 Economic Collapses That Changed History
ALEX PLANES, OF FOOL.COM WRITES
The scars are still raw five years after one of the worst financial crises in modern memory came to an end. Ever since the Dow Jones Industrial Average bottomed out in 2009, investors have been bombarded by warnings and predictions of imminent collapse from every corner of the punditsphere, and millions have listened, choosing to stay on the sidelines to nurse their portfolio’s wounds.
But the prophets of doom haven’t been right so far. The global economy, while not as robust as it could be, is hardly in freefall. Our most recent financial crisis, while undoubtedly hugely important in our own lives, simply isn’t as transformative as some of history’s worst economic collapses. It changed our lives, but the world continues to operate much as it did before.
To understand how transformative a financial crisis can truly be, let’s look back at five historical collapses that actually changed the course of history. These events toppled empires, altered economies, and shifted the global balance of power in ways few of us have experienced in our lifetimes. Let’s start with the most recent event, the one against which our latest crash is often measured.
1929: The Great Depression
The Roaring ’20s had it all: exciting new technologies, innovative new financial products, and enough boundless enthusiasm to push it all over the brink. It was the bull market that set the standard against which all others may be compared for centuries to come — the Dow’s value quintupled from its 1921 trough to its 1929 peak, and even after adjusting for inflation the index still grew 400% in those eight years. By comparison, the great bull market of the 1990s produced only 260% in real gains.
Source: Tony Fischer via Flickr.
There were important and very legitimate economic reasons for much of the boom. Productivity grew at a record-high rate throughout the Roaring ’20s. Automobiles and electricity were also in the early stages of transforming the Western world from an agrarian culture into an urban one.
Source: http://truthisscary.com/2014/02/5-economic-collapses-that-changed-history/
