A term used to describe signs of economic recovery or positive data during an economic downturn. The term green shoots is a reference to plant growth and recovery, and has been used during down economies to describe signs of similar growth.

One of the first uses of the term green shoots was to describe signals of economic growth during the economic downturn in the United Kingdom in 1991. The term gained greater notoriety when it was used by U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke to describe positive economic data during the financial crisis of 2008-2009.