OG 12-050, 一般现在时、将来时、过去完成时共存的问题

宁户

According to some analysts, the gains in the stock market reflect growing confidence that the economy will avoid the recession that many (had feared earlier in he year) and instead come in for a "soft landing," followed by a gradual increase in business activity.

根据OG 的解释，Past Perfect: This verb form is used with “had” to show the order of two events that took place in the past.
那么这一道题中的had feared 的前置事件是什么呢？？