Readers Question: what are the advantages and disadvantages of inflation? Inflation occurs when there is a sustained increase in the general price level. Traditionally high inflation rates are considered to be damaging to an economy. High inflation creates uncertainty and can wipe away the value of savings. However, most Central Banks target an inflation rate …
Definition: The natural rate of unemployment is the rate of unemployment when the labour market is in equilibrium. It is unemployment caused by structural (supply-side) factors. (e.g. mismatched skills) Diagram showing the natural rate of unemployment The natural rate of unemployment is the difference between those who would like a job at the current wage …
Readers Question: What are the effects of the exchange rate on UK businesses? The exchange rate will play an important role for firms who export goods and import raw materials. Essentially: A depreciation (devaluation) will make exports cheaper and exporting firms will benefit. However, firms importing raw materials will face higher costs of imports. An …
The NAIRU and Natural rate of unemployment are similar concepts – they both reflect the level of structural unemployment when the economy is close to full employment. However, they have different compositions and can vary in the short term. NAIRU – Non-accelerating Inflation rate of Unemployment. This is the level of unemployment that is consistent …
A fixed exchange rate occurs when a country keeps the value of its currency at a certain level against another currency. Often countries join a semi-fixed exchange rate, where the currency can fluctuate within a small target level. For example, the European Exchange Rate Mechanism ERM was a semi-fixed exchange rate system. Summary The idea …
How does the minimum wage affect aggregate demand/aggregate supply and macroeconomic factors such as inflation, unemployment and economic growth? A minimum wage is the statutory minimum wage that employers can pay per hour. In 2019, the UK minimum wage was set at £8.21 an hour for workers over 25. In the US, the federal min …
Readers Question: Given the widely varying fiscal policies of countries, both left and right, how come their growth rates over the long term are so close? source: World Bank To some extent growth rates are close; though it also depends which data and countries you use. However, from a very broad perspective, growth rates do …
Readers Question: The Labour party, among others, protests about the effects of government austerity policies on ordinary people but does government spending, even so-called ‘investment in infrastructure’, not automatically increase national debt which means punishing future generations? Firstly, if a government increases spending without any corresponding increase in taxes, then this change in the government’s …