Economic growth relatively high in developing countries during 2008-09 global recession

The 2008-09 recession was the deepest and longest witnessed by the global economy since the 1930s, but the continued relatively strong performance of developing countries has buoyed U.S. agricultural trade. Contrary to previous global economic crises, the causes and consequences were seen mostly in developed countries. While both developed and developing countries showed declines in 2008 and 2009, developing country growth remained positive, averaging about 4 percent above developed countries. U.S. agricultural export growth is increasingly dependent on developing countries and has benefited from the relatively strong economic performance of developing countries, as well as the depreciation of the U.S. trade-weighted dollar between 2002 and 2012. This chart is found in The 2008-09 Recession and Recovery Implications for the Growth and Financial Health of U.S. Agriculture, WRS-1201, May 2012.