The Asian financial crisis of 1997 refers to a macroeconomic shock experienced by several Asian economies – including Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, South Korea and Indonesia. Typically countries experienced rapid devaluation and capital outflows as investor confidence turned from over-exuberance to contagious pessimism as the structural imbalances in the economy became more apparent. The crisis of ’97-99 …
During 1980-81, the UK entered a recession – with falling output, rising unemployment and a fall in the inflation rate. The recession particularly hit manufacturing sector. The recession was caused by high-interest rates, an appreciation in Sterling and tight fiscal policy. In 1979, the incoming Conservative government inherited an economy with inflation in double figures. …
The UK recession of 1991 was primarily caused by high-interest rates, falling house prices and an overvalued exchange rate. Membership of the Exchange Rate Mechanism (1990-1992) was a key factor in keeping interest rates higher than desirable. The recession also came after the late 1980s economic boom – a period of high economic growth and …
The 1930s economy was marked by the effects of the great depression. After experiencing a decade of economic stagnation in the 1920s, the UK economy was further hit by the sharp global economic downturn in 1930-31. This lead to higher unemployment and widespread poverty. However, although the great depression caused significant levels of poverty and …
The 1920s are sometimes referred to as the ‘roaring twenties’, but for the UK economy, it was a period of depression, deflation and a steady decline in the UK’s former economic pre-eminence. In the US, the economy boomed on the back of mass production techniques, growing efficiency – and increasingly a credit bubble, which would …
In 1976, the minority Labour UK government of James Callaghan was ‘forced’ to borrow $3.9 billion from the IMF to stabilise the value of Pound. The loan was also accompanied with conditions to cut public spending and raise interest rates. It marked a symbolic break with the post-war economic consensus and was a reflection of …
There are different ways to measure the biggest companies. These are three methods: Market capitalisation – using FTSE all share index Revenue/sales Largest number of employees Top 10 UK firms by market capitlisation Rank Name Mkt cap (£m) 1 Royal Dutch Shell 178,414.2 2 HSBC Holdings 145,979.6 3 British American Tobacco 106,613.6 4 BP 90,115.0 …
The 1980s was a period of economic volatility. There was a deep recession in 1981 as the government tried to control inflation. The recession particularly hit manufacturing causing unemployment to rise to over 3 million. Unemployment did not fall until the mid and late 1980s when the economy boomed during the “Yuppie-years” of rising wages, …