Inflation Flashcards
Inflation definition
The rate of change in the average price level
overtime.
Deflation meaning
the decrease in the general price level of goods and services
Disinflation meaning
a slowdown in the rate of increase of the general price level of goods and service/inflation
What measure does the government prefer
CPI
Disadvantage of using CPI
- Excludes mortgage payments and interest
- Will be inaccurate for the ‘non-typical’ household
- Does not recognise improvements in the quality of goods and services over time
How does the basket of goods and services work
designed to represent typical purchases of consumers throughout the UK (700 items)
Different items are weighted according to their relative
importance in terms of how much their price changes
impact upon consumers
Limitation of RPI
Excludes all households in top 4% of incomes
Why would CPI be better than RPI
Covers a broader range of the population
How many households are the living costs and food survey sent to
6000 households
What does it mean if CPI is higher in UK than another country
UK is less price competitive
What is RPI and CPI used to determine
Increase or decrease in welfare benefits
What is the effect of inflation on workers
High inflation - higher costs of living
If inflation is caused by rising demand and falling unemployment - firms will increase wages
What does wage increase for workers mean to firms
Less money for the cost of production
May increase money that is paid for by consumers
Could lead to cost-push inflation
What is the effect of high inflation on firms
Rise in the cost of raw materials
Firms uncertain about future costs - less investment
With increasing, inflation interest rates may increase - increasing cost of borrowing, no investment
What is the effect of high inflation to consumers
will lead to consumers purchasing goods and
services today before prices rise further in the future
confusion over which prices are good value
