Managing the American economy

Running Head: WAR
WAR
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1WAR
Assess the war’s economic impact, including the expansion of factories due to wartime
production.
Periods of war are a matter of victory or defeat for the ones who are indulging in, the
belligerents but for the economy it is a matter of victory as war implies a sale of weapons and
gain in commercial terms even if that meant loss of lives and stability for the humankind. Post
the First World War the American economy had slid into a period of economic problem which is
known as the Great Depression. However ironically it was the war which had driven America out
of the period of economic misery. The conditions of the Second World War had been provided
an impetus in Europe due to increasing jingoism in Italy and Germany which had alarmed the
allies. It was a bad time for Europe as the politics of the continent hinted at the imminent times
of hardships but for America it was a reason to rejoice since war or war preparations in Europe
would have meant an opportunity for America to derive economic gains out of it since the allies
would be buying arms and ammunition from her. Naturally the economy of America had
transformed itself to be a war economy majorly. The active involvement of the Government
through the War Production Board and the Office of War Mobilization and Reconversion
ensured that no stone was left unturned to take advantage of the situation and help the national
economy emerge out of the period of economic struggles. Drastically the rate of employment had
witnessed an upsurge after years of unemployment and the focus of production had shifted from
consumer durable goods to war equipments. The general American public faced difficulties in
purchasing consumer goods and rationing had been introduced on eatable goods so that a degree
of equitability could be maintained and also to ensure that everyone got a share of tbe necessary
goods as per their necessity. These are the examples of the fiscal policies, hegemonic steps were
also taken by the American Government which sought to champion the war economy of the

2WAR
nation. The American Government had indulged in full fledged propaganda to ensure that more
people invested in war economy as a mark to show their patriotism towards the cause of the
nation. The government under Roosevelt had crafted a very clever method to relieve the citizens
of poverty and that was by means of buying war bonds in order to prevent the rate of inflation
(Shi & Tindall, 2016).