Macro Theme 2 Flashcards
What are the ways to measure economic performance?
Economic growth
Unemployment
Inflation
The current account balance
Distinction between real and nominal?
Real - adjusted for inflation
Nominal - market value
Distinction between total and per capita?
Total means all.
Per capita means average per citizen.
What is gross national product (GNP)?
The value of final services and product by uk owned businesses
What is gross national income (GNI)?
Total money earned by individuals and firms.
Definition of inflation:
A sustained general rise in prices across the economy.
Definition of deflation:
A sustained general fall in prices across the economy.
Definition of disinflation:
A fall in the rate of inflation ( there is still inflation in the economy, prices still rising but at a slower rate.
Definition of hyperinflation:
Where the inflation levels are extremely high.
Definition of stagflation:
When inflation is high during a recession, the economy is staggering but prices are still rising.
Inflation is measured in index.
What one the two ways to measure inflation?
CPI - consumer price index
RPI - retail price index
How to identify a set of goods to measure from?
Prices of a ‘basket’ of representative goods are recorded on a regular basis from the result of a livig cost and food survey.
Each year a few thousand house holds are asked to record their expenditure for one month. From this data it is possible to calculate what the ‘average’ household spends its money on.
Each year, some goods are added and some goods are removed, in an attempt to keep the measure relevant.
How is inflation calculated?
The figures are the weighted based on the proportion of total house hold income that they take up.
Prices are recorded in different areas of the country and retailers like cornershops and supermarkets, these result are averaged out and put into index form.
Surveys are sent out each month to record prices for the mix of goods and services shown in the survey.
- What does competitiveness lead to in inflation?
- What is shoe leather cost?
- What is menu costs?
- Higher prices in the uk lead to less exports and more imports
- The cost of time and effort that people expend by holding less cash
- Retailers have to change ‘menus’ (sinage, pricetags)
What is purchasing power parity?
PPP exchange rates can be used to measure the relative cost of a typical basket of goods and services in different countries and thus the relative spending power of people in different countries give their incomes
What is unemployment?
People who are willing and able to work but who do not have a job and activity seeking a job.
What is underemployment?
Workers that are highly skilled but working in low paying jobs, workers that are highly skilled but work in low skill jobs and part-time workers that would prefer to be full time
What is economic inactivity?
This occurs when people are not in the labour force, they are neither in work nor looking for work.
What is claimant count
Unemployment statistics which are produced based on the number of people claiming benefits.
What is frictional unemployment?
Unemployment which reflects job turnover in the labour market, caused by people moving between jobs
What is the working age?
16 - 65
What is the inactive population?
Includes students, stay at home parents, early retirees, unable to work due to disabilities or sickness
What is under employment?
Workers that are highly skilled but working in low paying jobs, workers that are highly skilled but work in low skill jobs and part-time workers that would prefer to be full time
What is the labour force?
The active population including the unemployed (people of working age)
What is long term unemployment?
In the ie people who are out of work for 12 months. Generally they find it much harder to find jobs.
What is the labour force survey (LFS)?
The enter national labor organisation runs the survey which directly asks people if they meet the following criteria:
What is structural unemployment?
This unemployment is due to a mismatch of skill in the labour market it can be caused by occupational and geographical immobilities.
What is frictional unemployment?
Unemployment which reflects job turnover in the labour market, caused by people moving between jobs
What is real wage unemployment?
This occurs when wages in a competitive labour market are pushed above the equilibrium
What is cyclical unemployment?
This occurs when there is insufficient demand in an economy for all workers who wish to work at current wage rates to obtain a job
What is seasonal unemployment?
Jobs which are seasonal in nature
What is full employment?
Where there is no cyclical unemployment, some workers will be fractionally or structurally unemployed even at full employment levelof GDP.
What is balance of payments?
Records of all financial transactions between the on and rest the world, it shows receipts from trade and is equal current account.
The difference in total value between payments into and out of a country over a period.
What is current account balance?
Primarily concerned with the balance of trade in goods and services.
What is current account deficit?
The value of imports is greater than the valve of exports.
What is current account surplus?
The value of exports is greater than the value of imports.
What is the deterioration of the current account?
We get a bigger deficit and we go from a surplus to a deficit.
What are the accounts of the balance of payments?
Current account
Financial account
Capital account
Components of aggregate demand:
Consumption+Investment+Government Spending+(Exports-Imports)
What is disposable income?
Influences on consumer spending?
Disposable income is the income left after taxes.
Influence:
Real disposable income
Employment and job security
Household wealth
Market interest rates