Comp 4: Economics Flashcards
Equilibrium (of a Market)
When the quantity supplied is equal to the quantity demanded
Factor Market
A market in which the factors of production are bought and sold
Opportunity Cost
Cost of the next best alternative use of money, time, or resources when one choice is made rather than another
Tax
A contribution to federal or state funds required for individuals or businesses
Capitalism
An economic system characterized by private, rather than government, ownership of industry. Prices, production, and distribution of goods are determined by competition in a free market.
Market Economy
An economic system where decisions about production, consumption and investment are guided by the price of goods and services, which are determined the laws of supply and demand
Deficit
When the quantity demanded exceeds the quantity supplied
Labor Force
All of the people working and willing/able to work, including those who want to work but are unable to find a job
Employment Percentage
The percentage of people employed in an economy
Great Depression
A unprecedented period of worldwide economic downturn. Began in Oct. 1929 with the United States stock market crash. World War II was integral in pulling many countries out of the depression by increasing factory production.
Dividends
Percentages of the profit
Keynesian Economics
Free markets can lead to economic inefficiencies and governmental intervention can lead to a stable, productive economy
Laissez-Faire
Adam Smith’s theory that the government should not interfere in the economy; translates to “let the people do as they choose”.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
The total value of all domestic production in a country. GDP sums up the market value of all final goods and services produced in a nation within one year.
Prince Henry The Navigator
Most notable explorer who found alternate trade routes to India through investing in larger and better ships
Consumer Price Index (CPI)
A measure of the economy that uses consumer spending to determine the strength of an economy
Second Industrial Revolution
The unprecedented increase in economic productivity during the late 1800s. Included large leaps forward in technology with expansion of use of electricity, petroleum, and steel.
Trade Cap
A limit to the amount of a good that can be imported or exported
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
A trade agreement that created a free trade zone between the US, Canada, and Mexico
Black Plague/Black Death
An outbreak of the Bubonic Plague - a deadly epidemic that struck Europe in the mid-1300s and killed millions
Traditional Economy
An economy where goods are produced mainly for consumption by one’s own family and traded or bartered in only the most basic ways
Stock Market
The market in which a person can buy and sell shares of a company
Economies of Scale
A reduction in the price of per-unit production resulting from producing more at once
Macroeconomics
The design and function of the economy as a whole
Demand
The quantity of a good that consumers desire to purchase at a given time in an economy
Age of Exploration
A period of time from the early 15th Century until the early 17th Century in which European ships traveled around the world in search of new trading routes
Interdependence of Economics
All economics require each other to function
Progressive Era
The rapid economic expansion of the Second Industrial Revolution also led to an increase in the difference between the haves and the have-nots, as well as the growth of oligopolies and monopolies
Adam Smith
The father of capitalism. Wrote “An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations”. Argued that an invisible hand guides the economy to its greatest productivity.
Absolute Advantage
A ability of an entity to produce more of a good or service than another entity using the same amount of resources
Surplus
When the quantity supplied is greater than the quantity desired
Spindletop
An oil derrick in Beaumont, Texas that became the most productive derrick in the world in 1901, producing over 100,000 barrels in a day and bringing a boom to Texas’ oil and gas industry
Dutch East India Company
One of the first joint-stock companies
Trade Barriers
Obstacles to trade
World Wars
WWI and WWII occurring overseas (with the exception of Pearl Harbor). Allowed the US to maintain and grow its production capacity, leading to massive economic expansions.
Trade Deficit
Buying more than they are selling
Specialization of Labor/Division of Labor
A tendency for groups to focus and work on (specialize) wherever they can make the best product at the highest revenue (comparative advantage) and use trade to acquire other products
Command Economy
Government controls the economy determining what should be produced and how much should be produced. This type of economy is most closely associated with communism.
Competition (Economics)
Companies will strive for a greater share of the market by producing higher quality and more cheaply priced goods
Perceived Value
How desirable a product is to the consumer
Disequilibrium (of a Market)
When either the quantity supplied or the quantity desired exceeds the other
Retaliatory Tariff
When Country A places a tariff on Country B’s imports because Country B placed a tariff on Country A’s imports
Specialization
A tendency for groups to focus and work on (specialize) wherever they can make the best product at the highest revenue (comparative advantage) an use trade to acquire other products
Means of Production
The non-human resources used to produce goods in an economy
Exporting
Selling to other countries
Law of Demand
As the price of a good increases, the less quantity of the good will be demanded
Free Trade
The ability for one country to trade with another without hindrance so that all goods can be produced with the greatest efficiency
Comparative Advantage
The ability of an entity to produce a good or service at a lower opportunity cost than another entity
Communism
A political theory derived from Karl Marx, advocating class war and leading to a society in which all property is publicly owned and each person works and is paid according to their abilities and needs.
Trade
The exchange of products for money between entities
Supply Side Economics/Reaganomics
The belief that government intervention in trade should focus on increasing the ability of suppliers to produce. This policy dominated the 1980s.
Barrier to Entry
When obstacles prevent new companies from entering the market
Tariff
A tax placed on a specific type of imported or exported good
Microeconomics
The study of individuals and their decisions
Supply
The quantity of a good produced at a given time in an economy
Share
Piece of ownership in a company, mutual fund or other investment
Scarcity
In Economics, the fact that there are not enough resources to fulfill all human needs and desires
Importing
Buying from other countries
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Consideration of what one gains and loses from a set of economic choices
Factors of Production
The determination of when and where economic activity can and most likely will occur: land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship
Purchasing Power
The ability to buy goods
Subsidies
Government payments to an industry to reduce costs or create false demand
Globalism
Economic and foreign policy planning on a global basis
Price Control
A maximum or minimum limit on the price of a good instituted by the government
Circular Flow
Movement in an economy of good, services, and money from consumers to producers and back again