The business cycle The following graph approximates the business cycle in the United States from January 1973 to January 1983. The vertical blue bars coincide with periods of six or more months of declining real GDP. Notice that real GDP trends upward over time but experiences ups and downs in the short run. A period of declining real GDP, such as the blue-shaded period in 1980, is known as an economic Economic output declined from the end of 1973 to the beginning of 1975. The point at which U.S. economic output bottomed out in early 1975 is known as _____. True or False: The ups and downs in real GDP appear to follow a consistent, predictable pattern over this period. True False Based on the preceding graph, in which of the following years did the unemployment rate most likely rise? Check all that apply. The last half of 1981 1976 1974