The document discusses the global economic recession that began in 2008. It traces the origins of the recession to the subprime mortgage crisis in the United States that caused a liquidity crunch among financial institutions and led to the withdrawal of investments from developing countries. As the slowdown spread from the US to other developed and developing economies, it contracted global growth and negatively impacted industries like automobiles and retail that depend on consumer demand. The recession also hurt the Indian economy through declines in exports, foreign investments, and share market prices.