Question

Which action most contributed to an international economic crisis during the early years of the Great Depression?

(1 point)

Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley tariff.


The United States stock market lost a great deal of its value.


The Federal Reserve sharply dropped interest rates.


European governments ended the use of the gold standard.

Answer 1

Congress passed the Smoot-Hawley tariff.

Explanation: The 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff raised U.S. import duties sharply, provoking retaliatory tariffs and a collapse in international trade, which significantly deepened and spread the global economic crisis.