recession

/rɪˈseʃən/ noun [C or U]

Definition

› ECONOMICS a period, usually at least six months, of low economic activity, when investments lose value, businesses fail, and unemployment rises: The experts predicted recession in the coal industry. The retail sector is now in recession. a deep/shallow/mild depressionenter/fall into/slide into (a) recession The economy has entered a deep recession.recover from/pull out of (a) recession The industry is recovering fast from what has proved to be a mild recession.

→ Compare depression → See also double-dip recession

(Definition of recession noun from the Cambridge Business English Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)