Government Shutdown Reportedly Cost U.S. Economy $6 Billion

Donald Trump finally reached a deal to temporarily end the longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history on Friday (Jan. 25), seemingly backing down from his demand to keep the government closed until he received the funding for the border wall. However, Reuters reports that the shutdown came at a huge cost to the U.S. economy.

S&P Global Ratings said that the U.S. economy lost at least $6 billion during the shutdown, citing a loss of productivity due to unpaid federal workers. "Although this shutdown has ended, little agreement on Capitol Hill will likely weigh on business confidence and financial market sentiments," S&P added.

Larry Kudlow, Trump's top economic adviser, previously said he didn't expect the shutdown to have too big an effect on the U.S. economy. "When the government reopens—and I'm not here to negotiate; I’m not going to make a prediction, that's up to the president—you will see an immediate snapback," he said on Jan. 22.

Nearly 800,000 federal employees were furloughed or asked to work without pay during the shutdown. Kudlow suggested that these employees were "volunteering" to work despite the shutdown, because they felt a strong "allegiance to President Trump."

Trump addressed the unpaid workers during his shutdown announcement. "I will make sure that all employees receive their back pay very quickly or as soon as possible,” he said. “It will happen fast.”