Reliable statistics on the scale of the downturn do not exist. It appears that the loss in industrial output—around 10 percent—may have been less than in both earlier and later depressions, and agricultural output may have declined little or not at all, but these numbers conceal a deeper problem that would plague the economy for the remainder of the century. Because farmers responded to lower prices by producing more, agricultural output did not shrink. But more crops on the market led to falling prices and deflation, which meant the farmers would pay back the cheap dollars they had borrowed
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