Readers Question: What are the factors that influence the fixing of a minimum wage? The UK’s first National Minimum wage was established in 1999 and was set at £3.60 for those over 21. It was feared by business that a minimum wage would cause unemployment. However, over the period between 1999 – 2007, in the …
A two speed Europe refers to how, within the EU, economies are growing at different rates and are at different stages in the business cycle. For example, countries in the core of the Eurozone (Germany, Netherlands, France) have seen relatively good recovery since the recession. In these countries, unit labour costs have remained competitive, enabling …
The Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernake recently warned that deep spending cuts could be “self-defeating to the still-fragile recovery”. Recent data showed that the global economic recovery remains fragile. The pace of economic growth is being held back by a combination of falling house prices, weak bank lending, high oil prices and lack …
Readers Question. Lastly, what effect would a poor unemployment figure (e.g. lower than expected nonfarm payroll numbers) have on a country’s currency? Is it likely to strengthen (due to lower expectations of inflation) or weaken (due to less domestic productivity and higher imports? Poor unemployment figures would probably weaken the currency. If unemployment figures are …
Can Governments Increase the Rate of Economic Growth? Governments often seek to increase the rate of economic growth. Higher growth rates improve public finances, increase economic welfare and help reduce unemployment. However, it is debatable how much the government can actually increase the rate of economic growth. The greatest potential for increasing economic growth occurs …
In times of uncertainty, people seek to find a safe investment. But, what are safe investments? Gold is currently over $1,500 May 2011 Gold / Silver. These are typically seen as a good investment and safeguard against inflation. Inflation decreases the value of money, but gold retains its value. With experiments in quantitative easing, there …
Readers Question: How can a larger government fiscal deficit case a larger international trade deficit Firstly, it is important not to confuse the two deficits. Government fiscal deficit occurs when government spending is greater than tax revenues. The deficit is the annual government borrowing requirement, measured by Public Sector Net Borrowing. International Trade deficit implies …
The UK economy faces a few paradoxes. Low Growth – High Inflation. Firstly, after a deep recession the economic recovery is weak. In theory, high unemployment and low growth should lead to low inflation. However, due to rising energy and food prices, we have inflation above target. This presents a conundrum for the Bank of …