The 1990s Economy: From Recession to Internet Boom

Economics Happy Hour Podcast · Sep 24, 2026 · 45m

The 1990s began with a recession that helped make the economy central to the 1992 presidential election. What followed was a long expansion, falling unemployment, and eventually federal budget surpluses. We weigh NAFTA against the rise of the internet as the decade’s most consequential economic change. Along the way, we look at what the dot-com boom built, even after its most famous companies disappeared.

In this episode, we talk about:

* How the early recession shaped the 1992 election

* Why falling unemployment challenged economists’ expectations

* NAFTA, budget surpluses, and the internet…