business cycle

noun

1. a recurrent fluctuation in the total business activity of a country.

business cycle

noun

1. Also called: trade cycle. the recurrent fluctuation between boom and depression in the economic activity of a capitalist country

business cycle

1. A period during which business activity reaches a low point, recovers, expands, reaches a high point, decreases to a new low point, and so on.

Word History and Origins

Origin of business cycle¹

First recorded in 1920–25

Example Sentences

The federal government runs a persistent deficit and that's OK, especially over the business cycle, since running large deficits during recessions is a way to shorten them.

From Salon

Mark says that businesses like his can be loyal to workers and take long-term decisions, riding through the peaks and troughs of the business cycle.

From BBC

But a brigade of academic economists and prominent voices on Wall Street are asking if the unruly business cycle they learned in school, and witnessed in practice, has fundamentally morphed into a tamer beast.

From New York Times

Her Advanced Placement economics course covers such topics as supply and demand, monetary policy, inflation, unemployment, gross domestic product, the peaks and recessions of the business cycle, fiscal policy and the Federal Reserve.

From Los Angeles Times

Two consecutive quarters of contraction is a common definition of recession, though economists on the eurozone business cycle dating committee use a broader set of data, including employment figures.

From Seattle Times