曼昆宏观经济学第一章.ppt

Important issues in macroeconomics What causes recessions? What is “government stimulus” and why might it help? How can problems in the housing market spread to the rest of the economy? What is the government budget deficit? How does it affect workers, consumers, businesses, and taxpayers? Important issues in macroeconomics Why does the cost of living keep rising? Why are so many countries poor? What policies might help them grow out of poverty? What is the trade deficit? How does it affect the country’s well-being? U.S. Real GDP per capita (2000 dollars) U.S. Inflation Rate(% per year) U.S. Unemployment Rate(% of labor force) Why learn macroeconomics? Why learn macroeconomics? Why learn macroeconomics? Example of a model: Supply demand for new cars shows how various events affect price and quantity of cars assumes the market is competitive: each buyer and seller is too small to affect the market price Variables: Qd = quantity of cars that buyers demand Qs = quantity that producers supply P = price of new cars Y = aggregate income Ps = price of steel (an input) Chapter Summary Economists use different models to examine different issues. Models with flexible prices describe the economy in the long run; models with sticky prices describe the economy in the short run. Macroeconomic events and performance arise from many microeconomic transactions, so macroeconomics uses many of the tools of microeconomics. * * This slide and the next contain a list of some topical issues that macro can help students understand. Feel free to substitute others as new issues emerge. * * Students will realize that the auto market is not competitive. However, if all we want to know is how an increase in the price of steel or a fall in consumer income affects the price and quantity of autos, then it’s fine to use this model. In general, making unrealistic assumptions is okay, even desirable, if they simplify the analysis without affecting the validity of the result