Glossary Flashcards
Ad valorem taxes
An indirect tax where a given percentage is added to the price of a good or service
Administrative barriers (in the context of trade)
Any administrative requirement that might prevent or reduce the amount of imports
Aggregate demand
Total spending in the economy, made up of consumption, investment, government spending and net export spending.
Aggregate supply
The total amount of domestic goods and services supplied by business and the government, including both consumer goods and capital goods.
Allocative efficiency
Occurs where the marginal social cost of producing a good is equal to the marginal social benefit of the good to society. In different words, it occurs where the marginal cost of producing a good (including any external costs) is equal to the price that is charged to consumers (P=MC)
Anti-dumping
Legislation to protect an economy against the importing of a good at a price below its unit out of production
Appreciation
An increase in the value of a country’s currency in a floating exchange rate system
Appropriate technology
Where technology caters to the particular economic, social and environmental characteristics of to users
Automatic stabilisers
Features of government fiscal policy, e.g. Unemployment benefits and direct tax revenues, that automatically counter-balance fluctuations in economic activity. For example, government spending on unemployment benefits automatically rise and direct tax revenues automatically fall when economy activity is slow
Balance of payments
The accounting record of all transactions (debits and credits) between the households, firms and government of one country, and the rest of the world
Balance budget
A situation that exists when planned government spending is equal to planned government expenditure
Barrier to trade
Anything which prevents free trade between two countries e.g. Tariffs, quotas
Barriers to entry
Obstacles that prevent a new firm from entering a market, such as economics of scales, product differentiation and legal protection
Break-even price
The price where average revenue is equal to average total cost. Below his price, the firm will shut down in the long run
Budget deficit
A situation that exists when planned government spending exceeds planned government revenue. A government may ‘run a budget deficit’ in order to increase aggregate demand in the economy.
Absolute advantage
Where a country is able to produce more output than other countries using the same input of factors of productions
Budget surplus
A situation that exists when planned government revenue exceeds planned government spending.
Business cycle
A diagram showing the periodic or cyclical fluctuations in economic activity. The business cycle shows that economies typically move through a pattern of economic growth with the phases: recovery, boom, slowdown and recession.
Capital
The factor of production that is made by humans and is used to produce goods and services. It occurs as a result of investment
Cartel
A formal agreement among firms in a collusive oligopoly
Central bank
The government’s bank. The institution that is responsible for an economy’s monetary policy
Ceteris paribus
A Latin expression meaning ‘let all other things remain equal’ used by economists to develop economic theories or models
Circular flow of income model
A simplified model of the economy that shows flow of money through the economy
Classic AS model
A model showing that the long run aggregated supply curve is vertical at the full employment level of output
Collusive oligopoly
Where a few firms in an oligopoly act together to avoid competition by resorting to agreements to fix prices or output
Common access resources
Also known as common pool resources or common property resources, these resources which have properties similar to public goods in that it is very difficult or impossible to prevent people from using or consuming the resource. Therefore, they are vulnerable to overuse and/or degradation.
Common market
A customs union with common policies on product regulation, and free movement of goods, services, capital and labour
Comparative advantage
Where a country is able to produce a good at a lower opportunity cost of resources than another country
Complementary good
Goods used in combination with each other, e.g. digital cameras and memory cards. Complementary goods have negative cords-price elasticity.
Constant returns to scale
A given percentage increase in the quantity of all factors of production results in an equal percentage change in output and thus no change in long-run average cost.
Consumer Price Index
A measure of the average rate of inflation which calculates the change in the price of a representative basket of goods and services purchased by the ‘average’ consumer.
Consumer Surplus
The additional benefit or utility received by consumers by paying a price that is lower than they are willing to pay.
Consumption
Spending by households on consumer goods and services.
Core Inflation
A measure of inflation that factors out the changes in the prices of products that tend to experience volatile price swings e.g. food and energy prices. This gives policy makers a better indication of long-term changes in the price level.
Corporate Social Responsibility
An approach taken by firms where they attempt to produce responsibly or ethically towards the community and environment, demonstrating a positive impact on society.
Cost-push inflation
A persistent increase in the average price level that comes about as a result of increases in the costs of productions and a decrease in aggregate supply (AS).
credit
borrowed money
Cross Price Elasticity of Demand
A measure of the responsiveness of the quantity of one good demanded in response to a change in the price of a related good. XED = %D in Qs of good A /%D in price of good B
Crowding out
A situation where the government spends more (government expenditure) than it receives in revenue and needs to borrow money, forcing up interest rates and ‘crowding out’ private investment and private consumption.
Current Account (of the balance of payments)
A measure of the international flow of funds from trade in goods and services, plus net investment income flows (profit, interest and dividends) and net transfers of money (foreign aid, grants and remittances).
Current Account Deficit
Where revenue from the exports of funds from trade in goods and services and income flows are less than the expenditure on the import of goods and services and income flows in a given year.
Current Account Surplus
Where revenue from the exports of funds from trade in goods and services and income flows are greater than the expenditure on the import of goods and services and income flows in a given year.
Customs Union
An agreement made between countries, where the countries agree to work towards free tare among themselves and also agree to adopt common external barriers against any country attempting to import into the customs union.
Cyclical (Demand-deficient) Unemployment
Unemployment that exists when there is insufficient aggregate demand in the economy and wages do not fall to compensate for this. This is usually associated with a slowdown in economic growth or negative growth.
De-Merit Goods
Products that are considered to be harmful for people that would be over-provided or over-consumed in a purely free market economy. De-merit goods are generally considered to be products whose consumption creates negative externalities.
Debt Cancellation
The act of eliminating the debt owed by a developing country government in order to allow it to achieve development objectives.
Decreasing return to scale
A given percentage increase in the quantity of all factors of production results in a smaller percentage increase in output and this an increase in long-run average costs (diseconomies of scale).
Deflation
A persistent fall in the average level of prices
Deflationary (recessionary) gap
The gap that occurs when macroeconomic equilibrium occurs at a level that is less than the full employment level of output
Demand
The quantity of a product that consumers are willing to and able to buy at a given price in a given time period.
Demand Curve
A curve, or line showing the relationship between the price of a product and quantity demanded over a range of prices.
Demand-Pull Inflation
A persistent increase in the average price level that comes about as a result of increases in aggregate demand (AD).
Demand Schedule
A chart or table showing the quantity of a product demanded at each price. A demand schedule, or a demand function, is used to draw a demand curve.