巴德 宏观经济学原理（英文版·第8版）Chapter 8 Eye Ons.pptxVIP

8EYE ONSPotential GDP and theNatural Unemployment Rate The quantity of capital per worker is greater in the United States than in Europe. U.S. technology, on average, is more productive than European technology.These differences between the United States and Europe mean that U.S. labor is more productive than European labor. Because U.S. labor is more productive than European labor, U.S. employers will pay more for a given quantity of labor than European employers will pay.The U.S. demand for labor lies to the right of the European demand for labor. Higher European income taxes and unemployment benefits mean that the U.S. supply of labor lies to the right of the European supply.Americans work longer hours than Europeans.The equilibrium real wage rate in the United States is higher than in Europe. Because U.S. labor is more productive than European labor, the U.S. production function, lies above the European production function.Americans work longer hours than Europeans.Potential GDP in the United States exceeds that in Europe. During the 1960s, U.S. real GDP per person grew at 2.9 percent a year. After 1970, it slowed to 2 percent a year.The blue line shows the actual path of real GDP.The black line shows the path of real GDP if that growth rate has been maintained.The blue-shaded wedge shows the lost output— equivalent to $509,000 per person. The red line shows the output gap—the percentage deviation of real GDP from potential GDP.When real GDP is below potential GDP, output is lost and the gap is negative.A red-shaded negative gap is called an Okun gap.The Okun gap from1960 to 2016 is equivalent to $34,000 per person. Since the end of the 1960s when the growth rate of real GDP slowed:The Lucas wedge is equivalent to 10 years’ income.The Okun gap is equivalent to about 8 months’ income.So smoothing the business cycle has a smaller payoff compared to the potentially huge payoff from restoring real GDP growth to its 1960s rate. In 2015, real GDP in the United S