By the time the big oil company was gone, the recession had hit.

In 2009 the company was hit hard by the recession.

Soon after, however, the recession hit California, and the project died.

Hard hit by the recession, the company had 110 employees in 2010, "down from an average of 240 workers between 2001 and 2007".

In 1990 the construction industry was hit hard by the recession.

She says rural areas have been hard hit by the recession.

The industry, like virtually every other, has been hit by the recession.

Prices are 10pc lower than in 2001 and demand levels have been hit by the recession.

But hotels in most price levels have been hard hit by the recession.

The three were among those hardest hit by the recession, having lost nearly 1.1 million jobs.