T3: final exam Flashcards
Scarcity
Limited amounts of goods and services are available to meet unlimited wants and needs.
Economics
The study of how people seek to satisfy their needs and wants by making choices on different levels (individuals, groups, government)
Opportunity Costs
The second option to the option that is actually chosen.
Microeconomics
The study of economic behavior and decision making in small units, such as households and firms.
Macroeconomics
The study of economic behavior and decision making in a nation’s whole economy.
Private Property
Protected by the 5th and 14th amendments. Property owned by individuals or companies and not by the government or the people as a whole.
Intellectual Property
included as private property (things created by a person, ex books, music, video).
Specialization
the concentration of productive efforts of individuals and businesses on a limited number of activities. Ex: a baker makes cakes and cookies, not cars. Leads to efficiency.
Trade Barrier
AKA Trade Restriction. A means of preventing a foreign product or service from freely entering a nation’s territory. Take several forms and can be used for various purposes.
Tariff
A type of trade barrier. A tax on imported goods. Used to be very high but are lower now. Law set by the importing country.
Import Quotas
A type of trade barrier. Place a limit on the amount of a good that can be imported. Law set by the importing country.
Voluntary Export Restraint (VER)
A voluntary limit set by the exporting country, restricting the quantity of a product it will sell to another country. Reduces the risk that the importing country will impose damaging trade barriers itself.
Licensing
A government requiring foreign countries to obtain licenses to sell goods. High licensing fees and slow licensing processes act as unofficial trade barriers.
Sanctions
Actions a nation or group of nations takes in order to punish or put pressure on another nation. Ex: in the 1960s the US banned all trade with Cuba (embargo).
Embargo
An official ban on trade or other commercial activity with a country. Ex: US to Cuba in the 1960s.
Effects of Trade Barriers
- Higher prices for foreign goods (competitive advantage to domestic firms)
- Trade wars
Trade Wars
When one country restricts imports, its trading partner may retaliate by placing its own restrictions on imports. If the first country responds with more limits, this is a trade war. Often cause economic hardship for both sides.
Beef Wars
pg 400 chart thing.
1985-EU bans import of beef treated w/ growth hormones.
1989-US imposes tariffs on tomatoes, pasta, citrus fruits, and ham
1996-WTO orders the EU to remove the beef ban
1999-EU refuses, US doubles tariffs on various things
2012-An agreement is reached
Protectionism
A reason for imposing trade barriers. This is the use of trade barriers to shield domestic industries from foreign competition. Three main arguments: -Saving jobs -Protecting infant industries -Safeguarding national security