The length of recessions

We look at what makes a recession short or long, comparing the United States and the euro zone, as well as different recessions over time. In principle, the difference between a short recession and a long recession may result from: The strength of the countercyclical economic policy response; The pace of the normalisation of corporate earnings and therefore investment and employment; The pace of the normalisation of the most cyclical components of production (industry, construction). We find that: Recessions are shorter in the United States than in the euro zone; The 2000-2001 recession was shorter than the recession of 2008-2009 (and subsequent years); The three above explanations of recession length are pertinent.