The graph above shows the value added to the U.S. economy for select industries since 2005. The period covers the run-up to the last recession, the recession itself (gray area), and the prolonged recovery since then. While a dozen years is a short economic history in which to see major sectoral changes, we can still see some here. A striking detail is that the FIRE (finance, insurance, real estate) sector was hit hard by the recession, but has since continued its upward trend. Construction, however, is still struggling to get closer to pre-recession levels, while manufacturing is almost there. Finally, the federal government registered a slight bump after the recession, while state and local governments are on a slow but continuous rise. FRED has much more on activity by sector, so feel free to explore from the handy release tables.

How this graph was created: Start from the release table for GDP by industry, choose which measure you want, then check the sectors and click “Add to Graph.”

Suggested by Christian Zimmermann.