Macroeconomics Flashcards
Macroeconomics
The study of the economy as a whole, including inflation, growth, unemployment and distribution of income in the whole economy.
Investment
An explanation that is the addition of capital stock to the economy or expenditure by firms on capital. It is a component of the GDP=C+I+G+(X-M). Be aware of the different definition for bank investments.
Inflation
An explanation that is a sustained or continuous increase in the general or average level of prices over a period of time.
Demand curve
Is a graphical representation of the law of demand. It is(usually) a downward-sloping curve (or line) illustrating the inverse relationship between price and quantity demanded.
Durable goods
Goods which are consumed over a long period of time, such as a television set or a car.
Absolute poverty
Absolute poverty exists when individuals do not have the resources to be able to consume sufficient necessities to survive
Aggregate demand
the total of all demands and expenditures on final goods in the economy at a given time and price level. It is composed of C for consumption, G for government expenditure, I for investments and NX for net exports (X-M)
Aggregate demand curve
Shows the relationship between the average price level and equilibrium national income. As the price level rises the equilibrium level of national income falls
Aggregate supply curve
Shows the relationship between the average level of prices in the economy and the level of total output.
Ad Valorem Tax
Tax levied as a percentage of the value of the good
Aggregate Supply
The total amount of goods and services that all the firms in all the industries in a country will produce at various price levels in a given period of time.
Barrier to exit
Barrier to exit - factors which make it difficult or impossible for firms to cease production and leave an industry.
Barriers to entry
Factors which make it difficult or impossible for firms to enter an industry and compete with existing producers.
Consumption
Total expenditure by households on goods and services over a period of time.
Business or economic or trade cycle
Regular fluctuations in the level of economic activity around the productive potential of the economy. In business cycles, the economy veers from recession, when it is operating well below its productive potential, to booms when it is likely to be at or even above its productive potential. The four phases are recession, depression, recover and boom.
Allocative or economic efficiency
Occurs when resources are distributed in such a way that no consumers could be made better off without other consumers becoming worse off.
Aggregate
The collective amount, sum or total.
Bank Base Rate
The interest rate which a bank sets to determine its borrowing and lending rates. It offers interest rates below its base rate to customers who deposit funds with it, whilst charging interest rates above base rate to borrowers.
National income
The value of the output, expenditure or income of an economy over a period of time.
Circular flow of income
A model of the economy which shows the flow of money, goods, services and factors of production as well as their payments around the economy.
Deflation
Deflation is a general decline of prices, often caused by a reduction of supply of money or credit. Can also be caused by a decrease in government, personal, or investment spending.
Closed economy
An economy where there is no foreign trade.
Bottleneck
A supply side constraint in a particular market in an economy which prevents higher growth for the whole economy. It is usually caused by a limitation of a section of the productive system. For example: If a country has a record production of tomatoes, but the number of trucks that would be available to transport this production is not enough to take all the tomatoes, this could be a bottleneck for the production and export of the tomatoes.
Active or discretionary fiscal policy
the deliberate manipulation of government expenditure and taxes to influence the economy.
Monetary policy
the attempt by government or a central bank to manipulate the money supply, the supply of credit, interest rates or any other monetary variables, to achieve the fulfilment of policy goals such as price stability.
Depression
a period when there is a particularly deep and long fall in output.
Workforce jobs
The number of workers in employment. It excludes the unemployed.
Base period
The period, such as a year or a month, with which all other values in a series are compared.
Laissez-faire
A doctrine opposing governmental interference in economic affairs beyond the minimum necessary for the maintenance of peace and property rights.
Expansionary fiscal policy
Fiscal policy used to increase aggregate demand.
Creeping inflation
small rises in the price level over a long period of time.
Factors of production
The inputs to the production process: land, which is all natural resources; labour, which is the workforce; capital, which is the stock of manufactured resources used in the production of goods and services; entrepreneurs, individuals who seek out profitable opportunities for production and take risks in attempting to exploit these.
Inflationary Gap
Its an output gap where the actual GDP exceeds potential full employment GDP
Capital-output ratio
the ratio between the amount of capital needed to produce a given quantity of goods and the level of output.