The folks at Axios have been talking to Standard & Poors and Goldman Sachs about the impact of President Biden's proposed infrastructure bill and the recently- passed American Rescue Plan Act, and it's pretty eye- popping:
Economists are becoming positively giddy about the potential for economic growth this year as President Biden and Congressional Democrats look set to push forward a $3 trillion infrastructure bill.
What we're hearing: "Stimulus helps build the bridge for the recovery to reach the other side, but an investment in infrastructure is the fuel to jump start the economic engine," Beth Ann Bovino, U.S. chief economist at S&P Global, says in an email.
- S&P predicts Biden's infrastructure plan will create 2.3 million jobs by 2024, inject $5.7 trillion into the economy — which would be 10 times what was lost during the recession — and raise per-capita income by $2,400.
State of play: Economists at Goldman Sachs again revised up their outlook for growth this year in a Sunday note to clients, predicting real consumption will grow by 9.5% in Q1 and 12.5% in Q2, citing retailer reopenings, the reversal of winter storm effects and a decline in new COVID-19 infections.
- Further, they note that OpenTable restaurant reservations are nearing 70% of normal nationwide and are back above their pre-crisis level in Texas.
- They also anticipate the pace of fiscal support to U.S. consumers will accelerate by $1 trillion on an annualized basis (or 5% of GDP) for March and the second quarter, relative to the previous six months.
This is another game- changing piece of legislation that, should Republicans attempt to block it in the Senate, Democrats should feel good about "ramming through" (i.e., allowing a vote on the Senate floor). It would have broad support in the country, if not with the Republican sedition caucus which is dedicated to sabotaging Democrats in general and Biden in particular. Going big will pay big dividends for the Democratic Party, but more importantly for the nation.
