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Econ Midterm Exam #2
Ch. 24-29
109
Economics
Undergraduate 2
11/10/2011

Additional Economics Flashcards

 


 

Cards

Term
Unemployment
Definition
# of people who are actively looking for work but have no job
Term
Labor Force
Definition
sum of employment + unemployment
Term
Labor Force Participation Rate
Definition
= labor force / population 16+ X 100
Term
Unemployment Rate
Definition

# of unemployed workers /

labor force X 100

Term
Natrual Rate of Unemployment
Definition

-always above 0% due to frictional unemployment, which is cause by constant job turnover, and structural unemployment

 

-Natual unemployment = Frictional + Structural

Term
Structional Unemployment
Definition

-unemployment that results when there are more people seeking jobs in a labor market than there are jobs available at current wage rate

 

 

Term
Efficiency Wages
Definition
wages that employers set above the equilibrium wage rate as an incentive for better employee performance
Term
Cyclical Unemployment
Definition

-the deviation of the actual rate of unemployment from the natural rate

 

-Actual unemployment = Natural + Cyclical

 

Term
Real Wage
Definition
wage rate divided by the price level
Term
Real Income
Definition
income divided by the price level
Term
Shoe-leather costs
Definition
the increased costs of transactions caused by inflation
Term
Menu Cost
Definition
the real cost of changing a listed price
Term
Unit-of-account costs
Definition
arise from the way inflation makes money a less reliable unit of measure
Term
Nominal Interest Rate
Definition
the interest rate expressed in dollar terms
Term
Real Interest Rate
Definition
the nominal interest rate minus the rate of inflation
Term
Rule of 70
Definition

tells us that the time it takes a variable that grows gradually over time to double is approximately 70 divided by that variable's annual growth rate

 

# of years for variable to double = 70 / annual growth rate of variable

Term
Physical Capital
Definition
consists of human-made resources such as buildings and machines
Term
Human Capital
Definition
the improvement in labor created by the education and knowledge embodied in the workforce
Term
Aggreagate Production Function
Definition

shows how productivity (real GDP per worker) depends on the quantities of physical capital per worker and human capital per worker as well as the state of technology

 

GDP=T x (physical capital per worker)^0.4 x (human capital per worker)^0.6

Term
Diminishing returns to physical capital
Definition
aggregate production function exhibits this when, holding amount of human capital and state of technology fixed, each successive increase in the amount of physical capital per worker leads to a smaller increase in productivity
Term
Growth Accounting
Definition
estimates the contribution of each major factor in the aggregate production function to economic growth
Term
Total Factor Productivity
Definition
the amount of output that can achieved with a given amount of factor inputs
Term
Research & Development
Definition
the spending to create and implement new technologies
Term
Convergence Hypothesis
Definition
international differences in real GDP per capita tend to narrow over time
Term
Savings-Investment Spending Identity
Definition
savings and investment spending are always equal for the economy as a whole
Term
Budget Surplus
Definition
when tax revenue exceeds gov't spending
Term
Budget Surplus
Definition
when gov't spending exceeds tax revenue
Term
Budget Balance
Definition
the difference b/w tax revenue and gov't spending
Term
National Savings
Definition

-total amount of savings generated within the economy

 

-sum of private savings + budget balance

Term
Capital Inflow
Definition
the net inflow of funds into a country
Term
Loanable Funds Market
Definition
hypothetical market that illustrates the market outcome of the demands for funds generated by borrowers and the supply of funds provided by lenders
Term
Interest Rate
Definition
price, calculated as percentage of amount borrowed, charged by lenders to borrowers for use of their savings for one year
Term
Rate of Return
Definition

the profit earned on the project expressed as a percentage of its cost

 

rate of return = revenue from project - cost of project / cost of project x 100

Term
Crowding Out
Definition
occurs when a gov't deficit drives up the interest rate and leads to reduced investment spending
Term
Shifts of the demand for loanable funds
Definition

-changes in perceived business opportunities

 

-changes in the government's borrowing

Term
Shifts of the supply of loanable funds
Definition

-changes in private savings behavior

 

-changes in capital inflows

Term
Fisher Effect
Definition
an increase in expected future inflation drives up the nominal interest rate, leaving the expected real interest rate unchanged
Term
Wealth
Definition
value of household's accumulated savings
Term
Financial Asset
Definition
a paper claim that entitles the buyer to future income from the seller
Term
Physical Asset
Definition
a claim on a tangible object that gives the owner the right to dispose of the object as he or she wishes
Term
Liabilty
Definition
a requirement to pay income in the future
Term
Transaction Costs
Definition
the expenses of negotiating and executing a deal
Term
Financial Risk
Definition
uncertainty about future outcomes that involve financial losses and gains
Term
Diversification
Definition
investing in several different things so that the possible losses are independent events
Term
Liquid
Definition
asset is liquid if it can quickly be converted into cash
Term
Illiquid
Definition

asset is illiquid if it cannot quickly be converted into cash

Term
Loan
Definition
a lending agreement b/w an individual lender and an individual borrowe
Term
Default
Definition
occurs when a borrower fails to make payments as specified by the loan or bond contract
Term
Loan-backed security
Definition
an asset created by pooling individual loans and selling shares in that pool
Term
Stock
Definition
a share in ownership of a company
Term
Financial Intermediary
Definition
an institution that transforms the funds it gathers from many individuals into financial assets
Term
Mutual Fund
Definition
a financial intermediary that creates a stock portfolio and then resells shares of this portfolio to individual investors
Term
Pension Fund
Definition
a type of mutual fund that holds assets in order to provide retirement income to its members
Term
Life Insurance Company
Definition
a claim on a bank that obliges the bank to give the depositer his or her cash when demanded
Term
Bank
Definition
a financial intermediary that provides liquid assets in the form of banks deposits to lenders and uses those funds to finance the illiquid investment spending needs of borrowers
Term
Efficient Markets Hypothesis
Definition
asset prices embody all publicly available information
Term
Random Walk
Definition
the movement over time of an unpredictabe variable
Term
Marginal Propensity to Consume (MPC)
Definition

the increase in consumer spending when disposable income rises by $1

 

MPC=change in spending / change in disposable income

Term
Marginal Propensity to Save (MPS)
Definition

the increase in household savings when disposable income rises by $1

 

MPS=1-MPC

Term
Multiplier
Definition

the ratio of the total change in real GDP caused by an autonomous change in aggregate spending to the size of that autonomous change

 

Multiplier = 1 / 1 - MPC

Term
Autonomous Change in Aggregate Spending
Definition
an initial change in the desired level of spending by firms, households, or gov't at a given level of real GDP
Term
Consumption Function
Definition

an equation showing how an individual household's consumer spending varies with the household's current disposable income

 

c = a + MPC x yd

Term
Aggregate Consumption Function
Definition

the relationship for the economy as a whole b/w aggregate current disposable income and aggregate consumer spending

 

C = A + MPC x YD

 

Can shift due to: -changes in expected future disposable income

-changes in aggregate wealth

Term
Planned Investment Spending
Definition
the investment spending that businesses intend to undertake during a given period
Term
Accelerator Principle
Definition
a higher growth rate of real GDP leads to higher planned investment spending, but a lower growth rate of real GDP leads to lower planned investment spending
Term
Inventory Investment
Definition
the value of the change in total inventories held in the economy during a given period
Term
Unplanned Inventory Investment 
Definition
occurs when actual sales are more or less than businesses expected, leading to unplanned changes in inventories
Term
Actual Investment Spending
Definition

planned investment spending + unplanned investment spending

 

I = Iplanned + Iunplanned

Term
Planned Aggregate Spending
Definition

the total amount of planned spending in the economy

 

AEplanned = C + Iplanned

Term
Income-Expenditure Equilibrium
Definition

when aggregate output, measured by real GDP, is equal to planned aggregate spending

 

 

Term
Income-Expenditure Equilibrium GDP
Definition

the level of real GDP at which real GDP equals planned aggregate spending

 

GDP = AEplanned + Iunplanned

Term
Keynesian Cross
Definition
diagram that identifies income-expenditure equilibrium as the point where the planned aggregate spending line crosses the 45 degree line
Term
Aggregate Demand Curve
Definition

shows the relationship b/w the aggregate price level and the quantity of agregate output demanded by households, businesses, the government, and the rest of the world

 

downward sloping

Term
Wealth effect of a change in the aggregate price level 
Definition
the effect on consumer spending caused by the effect of a change in the aggregate price level on the purchasing power of consumers' assets
Term
Interest rate effect of a change in the aggregate price level
Definition
the effect on consumer spending and investment spending caused by the effect of a change in the aggregate price level on the purchasing power of sconsumers' and firms' money holdings
Term
Factors that shift the aggregate demand curve
Definition

-changes in expectations

-changes in wealth (real value of household assets)

-size of the existing stock of physical capital

-fiscal policy (gov't increases spending or cuts taxes)

-monetary policy (central bank increases quantity of money)

Term
Aggregate Supply Curve
Definition
shows the relationship b/w the aggregate price level and the quantity of aggregate output supplied in the economy
Term
Nominal Wages
Definition
the dollar amount of the wage paid
Term
Sticky wages
Definition
nominal wages that are slow to fall even in the face of high unemployment and slow to rise even in the face of labor shortages
Term
Short-run aggregate supply curve
Definition
shows the relationship b/w the aggregate price level and the quantity of aggregate output supplied that exists in the short run, the time period when many production costs can be taken as fixed
Term
Factors that shift the short-run aggregate supply curve
Definition

-changes in commodity prices 

-changes in nominal wages

-changes in productivity

Term
Long-run aggregate supply curve
Definition

shows the relationship b/w the aggregate price level and the quantity of aggregate output supplied that would exist if all prices, including nominal wages, were fully flexible

 

vertical at potential output level

Term
Potential Output
Definition
the level of real GDP the economy would produce if all prices, including nominal wages, were fully flexible
Term
AD-AS model
Definition
the aggregate supply curve and aggregate demand curve are used together to analyze economic fluctuations
Term
Short-run macroeconomic equilibrium
Definition
when the quantity of aggregate output supplied is equal to the quantity demanded
Term
Short run equilibrium aggregate price level
Definition
the aggregate price level in the short-run macroeconomic equilibrium
Term
Short-run equilibrium aggregate output
Definition
the quantity of aggregate output produced in the short-run macroeconomic equilibrium
Term
Demand shock
Definition
an event that shifts the aggregate demand curve
Term
Supply shock
Definition
an event that shifts the short-run aggregate supply curve
Term
Stagflation
Definition
the combination of inflation and falling aggregate output
Term
Long-run macroeconomic equilibrium
Definition
when the point of short-run macroeconomic equilibrium is on the long-run aggregate supply curve
Term
Recessionary Gap
Definition
when the aggregate output is below potential output
Term
Inflationary Gap
Definition
when aggregate output is above potential output
Term
Output Gap
Definition
the percentage difference b/w actual aggregate output and potential output
Term
Self-Correcting Economy
Definition
the economy is self-correcting when shocks to aggregate demand affect the aggregate output in the short run, but not the long run
Term
Stabilization Policy
Definition

the use of gov't policy to reduce the severity of recessions and rein in excessively strong expansions

 

use of fiscal or monetary policy

Term
Social Insurance Programs
Definition

gov't programs intended to protect families against economic hardship

 

social security, medicare, medicaid

Term
Epansionary fiscal policy
Definition

increases aggregate demand

 

-increase in gov't purchases of goods and services

-a cut in taxes

-increase in gov't transfers

Term
Contractionary fiscal polcy
Definition

reduces aggregate demand

 

-reduction in gov't purchases of goods and services

-an increase in taxes

-reduction in gov't transfers

Term
Multiplier for change gov't purchases
Definition
1/(1-MPC)
Term
Multiplier for change in gov't transfers
Definition
MPC/(1-MPC)
Term
Lump-sum taxes
Definition
taxes that don't depend on the taxpayer's income
Term
Automatic Stabilizers
Definition
government spending and taxation rules that cause fiscal policy to be automatically expansionary when the economy contracts and automatically contractionary when the economy expands
Term
Discretionary fiscal policy
Definition
fiscal policy that is result of deliberate actions by policy makers rather than rules
Term
Budget Balance
Definition

whether the gov't is running a surplus or deficit

 

equal to savings by government

 

Sgovernment = T - G - TR

Term
Cyclically adjusted budget balance
Definition
an estimate of what the budget balance would be if real GDP were exactly equal to output
Term
Fiscal Year 
Definition
runs from October 1 to September 30 is labeled according to the calendar year in which it ends
Term
Public Debt
Definition
governmment debt held by individuals and institutions outside the government
Term
Debt-GDP ratio
Definition
the government's debt as a percentage of GDP
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