The Global Economy Is Still Feeling the Lehman Fallout 10 Years Later

The collapse of Lehman Brothers and subsequent global financial crisis sent shockwaves through the world economy, many of which still reverberate a decade later.

The deepest international recession since the Great Depression prompted central banks to deliver massive and unorthodox monetary stimulus, while governments either eased fiscal policy or delivered austerity depending on the country.

Having cut interest rates to almost zero or even lower in some cases, central banks started buying bonds in a bid to reignite animal spirits among companies and consumers. The result? An unprecedented swelling of their balance sheets which while set to peak is unlikely to ever be reversed.

For all the talk of austerity, government debts in most parts of the world are larger now than in 2007, potentially a risk for economies in the future as central bankers tighten monetary policy.

The world economy collapsed into its deepest recession since World War II in the wake of the crisis, yet after initially bouncing, most economies showed only moderate growth for most of the past decade.

Some 25 million more people are now unemployed than back in 2007 even as the U.S. jobless rate falls. Particularly eye-catching is the youth unemployment rate in countries such as Greece, where—while down from over 60 percent in 2013—it’s still hovering at 40 percent.

The lackluster recovery is best evidenced by the lack of wage pressures across most of the world even as hiring strengthens.

If there has been a winner of the past 10 years it’s the corporate sector, which in an age of easy money has seen its stock prices soar and profits start to rise.

At the heart of the crisis, house prices have now recovered in most corners of the world, exacerbating the gap between those with assets and those without.

Voters are hitting back at inequality, frustrated by the lack of jobs or low pay for those who have work. As big business bounces back, there has been a backlash at the ballot box with populist wins, such as Donald Trump’s Presidential election victory in the U.S. elections and the U.K.’s vote to leave the European Union.