The COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting stay-at-home orders threw the U.S. economy into a tailspin late in the first quarter. It wreaked havoc on households and businesses, putting an abrupt end to record-low unemployment and more than five straight years of quarterly GDP growth. Take our quiz to see how much you recall about the first months of the outbreak.
1. What percentage of outstanding U.S. home loans were in forbearance (the buyer was not making payments) as of late May?
A. 2%
B. 8%
C. 1%
D. 11%
2. Personal saving as a percentage of disposable income hit 33% in April, after climbing to 9.6% in the first quarter. Since 1947, the quarterly rate exceeded 15% only one time. In what year was that?
A. 1951
B. 1992
C. 1975
D. 2012
3. Which publicly held company did not report a profit in the first quarter of 2020?
A. Salesforce
B. Slack Technologies
C. Tyson Foods
D. Coca-Cola
4. Which company has filed for bankruptcy since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic?
A. Intelsat
B. Akorn
C. Diamond Offshore
D. Hertz Global Holdings
E. All of the above
5. As of June 8, what was the maximum loan size available under the Fed’s Main Street Lending program?
A. $300 million
B. $50 million
C. $100 million
D. $500 million
6. By how much did global merger and acquisition activity decline in the first quarter of 2020?
A. 10%-14%
B. 15%-19%
C. 20%-25%
D. More than 25%
7. On which date did the World Health Organization declare the coronavirus a pandemic?
A. March 11
B. February 26
C. January 30
D. March 29
8. Which U.S. leader said back in May, “In the long-run and even in the medium-run, you wouldn’t want to bet against the American economy.”
A. President Donald Trump
B. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin
C. Republican Senator Rand Paul
D. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell
Answers: 1-B; 2-C; 3-B; 4-E; 5-A;6-D; 7-A; 8-D
Sources: Mortgage Bankers Association, Federal Reserve, CFO.com, Refinitiv