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Economics 1022A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Real Wages, Potential Output, Business Cycle

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Western University
Department
Economics
Course
Economics 1022A/B
Professor
Macdonald

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9

Economics 1022A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Frictional Unemployment, Real Wages, Structural Unemployment

10

Economics 1022A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Real Wages, Potential Output, Business Cycle

11

Economics 1022A/B Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Loanable Funds, Capital Loss, Financial Capital

Document Summary

Economic growth is the sustained expansion of production possibilities measured as the increase in real. The economic growth rate is the annual percentage change of real gdp. The economic growth rate tells us how rapidly the total economy is expanding. The standard of living depends on real gdp per person. Real gdp per person is real gdp divided by the population. Real gdp per person grows only if real gdp grows faster than the population grows. Real gdp can increase for two distinct reasons: The economy might be returning to full employment in an expansion phase of the business cycle. The return to full employment in an expansion phase of the business cycle isn"t economic growth. The expansion of potential gdp is economic growth. The rule of 70 states that the number of years it takes for the level of a variable to double is approximately. 70 divided by the annual percentage growth rate of the variable.

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Related Questions

1. Fiscal policy attempts to affect the level of overall spendingin the economy by changes in:
A) the interest rate.
B) the money supply.
C) banking regulations.
D) taxes and spending.


2. Economists have identified several consecutive months of fallingemployment and forecasts for the next few months are for more ofthe same. At what point in the business cycle is the economyapparently located?
A) recession
B) expansion
C) business cycle peak
D) business cycle trough


3. The onset of the Great Depression:
A) was not a shock to anyone since most economists predicted the“roaring 20s” were bound to end in disaster.
B) created a disagreement between the Hoover administration andconventional economists because Hoover wanted the government tointervene much more quickly than most others.
C) came as a considerable shock to the conventional wisdom ofeconomics at that time and opened the door for critiques ofmainstream thought by economists like JM Keynes.
D) was in 1918 at the end of World War I.


4. When economists measure economic growth, they often use:
A) the inflation rate.
B) the unemployment rate.
C) nominal GDP.
D) real GDP.


5. In a typical business cycle, the business cycle peak isimmediately followed by the:
A) recession.
B) business cycle trough.
C) expansion.
D) depression.


6. Suppose an economy experiences rising total output accompaniedby increasing employment, this is generally known as:
A) stagflation.
B) recession.
C) inflation.
D) expansion.


7. Controlling interest rates is an example of:
A) fiscal policy.
B) tax policy.
C) monetary policy.
D) exchange rate policy.


8. The alternation between recessions and expansions is known asthe:
A) unemployment rate.
B) long-run economic growth.
C) business cycle.
D) macroeconomy.


9. A recession in America is typically associated with:
A) a falling unemployment rate.
B) a decrease in the number of people living in poverty.
C) a decrease in the percentage of Americans with healthinsurance.
D) an increase in corporate profits.


10. The purpose of macroeconomic policy is to:
A) bring unemployment closer to the natural rate.
B) reduce the severity of recessions.
C) rein in excessively strong expansions.
D) bring unemployment closer to the natural rate and to reduce theseverity of recessions.


11. The trade balance is the difference between the value ofthe:
A) trade deficit and the budget deficit.
B) goods and services that one country sells to other countries andthe value of the goods and services it buys in return.
C) exchange rates of two countries that are engaged ininternational trade.
D) national debt and the foreign debt.


12. Increasing the total amount of available productive resourcesis the focus of __________.
A) macroeconomics
B) fiscal policy
C) monetary policy
D) microeconomics


13. The point on a business cycle when real GDP stops rising andbegins falling is a(n):
A) peak.
B) trough.
C) expansion.
D) recession.


14. During a recession, one will often observe:
A) aggregate output rising.
B) unemployment rates will be increasing while aggregate output isfalling.
C) employment rates will be rising.
D) zero unemployment rates.


15. Monetary policy involves:
A) changes in government spending.
B) changes in government tax receipts.
C) changes in the quantity of money.
D) changes in tax rates.


16. The trough of the business cycle:
A) comes right after the expansion phase.
B) comes before the recession phase.
C) is a temporary maximum level of real GDP.
D) is a temporary minimum level of real GDP.


17. Which one of the following statements about the U.S. economy isnot accurate?
A) Since the Second World War, aggregate output grew at a ratelower than the average annual growth rate of population.
B) Since the Second World War, aggregate output grew at a ratehigher than the average annual growth rate of population.
C) Since the Second World War, macroeconomic policy has helped makethe economy more stable.
D) Long-run growth per capita is the key to higher wages and arising standard of living.


18. An economic recovery is all of the following except:
A) economic growth of a sustained nature.
B) a short-run increase in aggregate production in aneconomy.
C) a time of increasing employment.
D) the end of the business cycle.


19. Which of the following would NOT be classified as amacroeconomic question?
A) How many people are employed in the economy as a whole?
B) What determines the overall level of prices in the economy as awhole?
C) What determines the overall trade in goods, services, andfinancial assets between the United States and the rest of theworld?
D) What determines the cost to a university or college of offeringa new course?


20. Which of the following statements regarding price level orinflation is correct?
A) Supply and demand can not explain why a particular good orservice becomes more expensive relative to other goods andservices.
B) Inflation affects only the more advanced countries whereas lessadvanced countries face deflation.
C) Prices of most goods and services remained stable during thegreat depression.
D) In general, when the economy is in recession and jobs are hardto find, inflation tends to fall.


21. If wages grew at a 5% rate last year and average prices grew ata 3% rate, then the average worker is:
A) better off.
B) worse off.
C) no better or worse off.
D) unaffected.


22. In an open economy:
A) the exchange rate is determined by the government.
B) specialization in activities with a comparative advantage is notpossible.
C) trade is only beneficial to the relatively larger economy.
D) there is trade in goods, services, or assets with othercountries.


23. Changes in government spending and taxes in an effort to changeoverall spending in an economy is:
A) fiscal policy.
B) monetary policy.
C) investment.
D) the stock market.


24. If an economy is open, this means that:
A) anyone can immigrate to the country.
B) trading with other countries makes up a portion of itseconomy.
C) it does not trade with other countries.
D) it will experience a drop in its real GDP.


25. Inflation is a situation where:
A) the average price level falls.
B) the average price level increases.
C) the average price level becomes negative.
D) the real price level falls.


26. The topics studied in macroeconomics include:
A) the price of a motorcycle.
B) the wages of engineers.
C) the average price level in the economy.
D) how much ice cream consumers buy.


27. A period of rising real GDP is a(n):
A) peak.
B) trough.
C) expansion.
D) recession.


28. The modern tools of macroeconomic policy are:
A) tax policy and antitrust policy.
B) fiscal policy and monetary policy.
C) monetary policy and exchange rate policy.
D) capital policy and labor policy.


29. A “rubber necking” traffic jam is an example of:
A) microeconomics in action.
B) individual behavior that has a large aggregate impact.
C) the paradox of thrift.
D) an outcome smaller than the sum of its parts.


30. The most painful consequence of a recession is:
A) rising unemployment.
B) increasing inflation.
C) increasing aggregate output.
D) higher interest rates.


31. Per capita economic growth is:
A) economic growth per unit of capital.
B) economic growth per person.
C) economic expansion over the business cycle.
D) sustained increase in aggregate output.


32. Keynesian economics stressed:
A) total spending.
B) the self-regulating power of free markets.
C) the long run.
D) that the Depression should run its course to bring down the highcost of living.


33. When an economy's overall production grows faster than itspopulation, this is referred to as:
A) long-run growth per capita.
B) an increase in nominal GDP.
C) deflation.
D) the paradox of thrift.


34. Fiscal policy attempts to affect the overall level of spendingin the economy through:
A) changes in the inflation rate.
B) changes in the quantity of money or the interest rate.
C) changes in tax policy or government spending.
D) discretionary regulation of profits and wages.


35. With regard to the aggregate price level, economists generallybelieve:
A) price stability is a desirable goal.
B) inflation is worse than deflation.
C) deflation is worse than inflation.
D) inflation actually benefits most retired people.


36. Recessions are periods when:
A) output rises.
B) the aggregate price level rises.
C) the unemployment rate is falling.
D) output and employment are falling.


37. Monetary policy attempts to affect the overall level ofspending in the economy by changes in:
A) taxes.
B) taxes and spending.
C) taxes and interest rates.
D) interest rates and the quantity of money.


38. The basic difference between an economic recession and economicdepression is that:
A) the latter is a shorter economic downturn than the former.
B) during recessions output falls faster than duringdepressions.
C) during depressions employment falls faster than duringrecessions.
D) the former is a longer economic downturn than the latter.


39. The central mission of modern macroeconomics is to prevent_____ from happening again.
A) recessions
B) inflation
C) deflation
D) anything like the Great Depression


40. Fiscal policy refers to:
A) the control of interest rates.
B) the control of government spending and taxations.
C) the control of the quantity of money.
D) the control of interest rates and of government spending.


Q17. The term "recession" refers to a
a. period of decline in real GDP over two consecutive quarters
b. fall in the general level of real wages over two consecutive quarters
c. fall in the CPI over two consecutive quarters
d. fall in the rate of increase of real per capita GDP

Q18. Cost changes generally lag behind price changes during the business cycle.
a. true
b. false

Q19. Measuring the intensity of the business cycle requires
a. adding seasonal variations to cyclical fluctuations
b. adding seasonal variations and random fluctuations to cyclical changes
c. eliminating seasonal variations and identifiable random forces from the data
d. multiplying the trend by the cyclical fluctuations

Q20. During the contraction phase of the business cycle,
a. prices fall relative to costs, reducing profit margins
b. costs fall relative to prices, reducing profit margins
c. prices fall relative to costs, increasing profit margins
d. costs fall relative to prices, increasing profit margins

Q21. The aggregate supply curve is
a. a curve showing the quantities of total output that business will purchase for investment at various price levels
b. a curve showing the quantities of total output that will be offered for sale at various price levels
c. a curve showing the quantities of goods and services that households will provide at various price levels
d. one point on the aggregate expenditure curve

Q22. The aggregate demand curve is the sum of individual demand curves in the economy.
a. true
b. false

Q23. The classical economic doctrine held that the normal equilibrium position of the economy was one of
a. rising interest rates
b. some unemployment
c. rising prices
d. full employment

Question 1 A recession occurs when there is a six consecutive month fall in Question 1 options:

A) real GDP.

B) nominal GDP.

C) the trade balance.

D) the price level.

Question 2 Since 1929, real GDP in the United States has grown at an average annual rate of about Question 2 options:

A) 0.5 percent.

B) 1 percent.

C) 3 percent.

D) 7.5 percent.

Question 3 Suppose that after reading a two-year low, the index of leading economic indicators rises for several months. Which of the following economic events will likely follow? Question 3 options:

A) A recession.

B) Severe inflation.

C) Increased production.

D) Reduced investment.

Question 4 Which of the following people would be officially counted as unemployed? Question 4 options:

A) A person who works only 5 hours per week for pay.

B) A full-time college student who chooses not to have a paying job.

C) A family member who works 20 hours per week in the family business without pay.

D) A jobless high-school graduate who is actively looking for work.

Question 5 Assume a country's population (age 16 and over) is 1 million people. What is the unemployment rate if there are 750,000 people in the labor force, 60,000 of whom are unemployed? Question 5 options:

A) 6%.

B) 8%.

C) 12.5%

D) 16.7%

Question 6 If a sizable number of workers were switched from full-time to half time employment, then the official unemployment rate would Question 6 options:

A) rise.

B) fall.

C) remain unchanged.

D) react unpredictably.

Question 7 Which of the following people would be classified as structurally unemployed? Question 7 options:

A) Computer programmers who lost their jobs because of a recession.

B) Construction workers who are on temporary layoff.

C) Discouraged workers who have given up looking for work.

D) Textile workers who lost their jobs because of new foreign competition.

Question 8 The economy is fully employed when there is no :

A) seasonal unemployment.

B) frictional unemployment.

C) structrual unemployment.

D) cyclical unemployment.

Question 9 The GDP gap measures the nation's monetary losses of real goods and services from :

A) operating at less than full employment.

B) discouraged workers who have stopped searching for employment. C) murders, suicides, and other sociological impacts of sustained unemployment.

D) seasonal and frictional unemployment.

Question 10 In the United States, the unemployment rate for blacks is :

A) roughly the same as the unemployment rate for whites.

B) about 1–2 percentage points higher than the unemployment rate for whites.
C) more than twice the unemployment rate for whites.

D) between 3 and 4 times the unemployment rate for whites.