The gap between Americans' perception of the economy and reality

- YouTube

As the candidates make their final arguments in the 2024 US Presidential Election, the economy is front and center on the minds of voters. Despite all signs indicating stable and above-trend growth in the US, many Americans feel uncertain about how well the economy is doing, said Robert Kahn, Managing Director of Global Macro-Geoeconomics at Eurasia Group. He discussed the gap in US economic perception versus reality with GZERO’s Tony Maciulis at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, DC, in a Global Stage interview. Kahn noted that heightened political polarization has skewed views of economic performance while lingering geopolitical shocks and high prices add to concerns. Kahn emphasized that there is an element of worry around the “legacy of the pandemic…that Vice President Harris is just really struggling to overcome” even though underlying data proves otherwise. The two also discussed former President Trump's accusations that the Federal Reserve is "playing politics" with interest rates and what the impact would be globally if Trump were, as president, to assert a heavier hand in decision-making at the central bank.

Watch more from Global Stage.

More from GZERO Media

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the Cabinet Room at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., April 17, 2025.

REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein

A federal judge set up a showdown with the Trump administration on Wednesday with a ruling that threatens to find the government in contempt if it fails to comply with a judicial order to provide due process to Venezuelans deported to a prison in El Salvador.

Gavin Newsom speaks at the Vogue World: Hollywood Announcement at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood, CA on March 26, 2025.
Photo by Corine Solberg/Sipa USA

California governor Gavin Newsom kicked off a campaign to promote Canadian tourism in his state, pitching its sunny beaches, lush vineyards, and world-class restaurants.

An employee checks filled capsules inside a Cadila Pharmaceutical company manufacturing unit at Dholka town on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, April 12, 2025.
REUTERS/Amit Dave

Donald Trump’s administration announced that it is opening investigations into pharmaceutical and semiconductor supply chains, which will likely result in tariffs that will hurt suppliers in Europe, India, and Canada.

Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party speaks after Democrat Josh Stein won the North Carolina governor's race, in Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S., November 5, 2024.
REUTERS/Jonathan Drake

As the Democrats start plotting their fight back into power in the 2026 midterms, one issue has come up again and again.

People gather after Friday prayers during a protest in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, in Amman, Jordan, on April 4, 2025.
REUTERS/Jehad Shelbak

Jordanian authorities announced on Wednesday the arrest of 16 people accused of planning terrorist attacks inside Jordan. The country’s security services say the suspects had been under surveillance since 2021, and half a dozen of them were reportedly members of the Muslim Brotherhood, a transnational Islamist organization.