Immigration has helped strengthen the US economy

One "big reason" the U.S. surpassed its economic peers is a "rebound in immigration," The New York Times said

(Image credit: Javier Alvarez / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

published 1 March 2024

What happened?

The U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.2% last quarter, the sixth straight quarter of growth. "When you poke your head up and look around the world, that's pretty good," Marketplace said. And one "big reason" the U.S. surpassed expectations and its economic peers is a "rebound in immigration," The New York Times said.

America's "absolutely astronomical" immigration has been "instrumental" in its best-in-class post-pandemic rebound, said Pia Orrenius, a senior economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, to The Washington Post. "You can't grow like this with just the native workforce. It's not possible." At the same time, "the biggest pull for migrants is the strength of the labor market," said University of California Merced economist Catalina Amuedo-Dorantes. "More than any immigration policy."

The Congressional Budget Office projects that net immigration gains over the next decade will add $7 trillion to the economy. Immigration "remains an intensely polarizing issue in American politics," The Washington Post said, but "whoever wins the [2024] election will take the helm of an economy that immigrant workers are supporting tremendously — and likely will keep powering for years to come."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.