Similarly, 33 percent of unmarried mothers and nearly one-third of mothers with family income less than $ reported not working or working less. See Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (2021), Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2020 (Washington: Board of Governors, May), https://www.federalreserve.gov/publications/files/2020report-economic-well-being-us-households-202105.pdf.
First, it is rational of firms to want to repay interest-bearing liabilities and increase capital as appropriate, because they have become more conscious of business risk and financial risk after experiencing the severe downturn in the business cycle after the bursting of the bubble and instability in the financial system.