Final answer:
The end of a recession is called the trough, marking the lowest point before the economy recovers and enters an expansion phase. This concept is integral to understanding the business cycle, which includes the recession period from peak to trough and recovery from trough back to peak.
Step-by-step explanation:
The end of a recession is referred to as the trough. This term marks the lowest point of a recession before the economy starts to recover and head into an expansion phase. In the business cycle, a recession lasts from the peak to the trough, and the subsequent recovery phase runs from the trough back to the peak. During the trough period, the economy begins to stabilize and exhibit signs of growth, which eventually leads to an economic expansion. Notably, some of the longest expansions observed in the twentieth century occurred after 1960. For example, the Great Recession ended at the trough in June 2009, leading to a prolonged period of expansion. Similarly, the recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic ended in May 2020, marking the beginning of a new phase of economic recovery.