Last week I accompanied a friend with a broken arm to a local hospital. We arrived 8 pm, but we didn’t get seen until 5 am. This kind of experience is typical of the recent surge in waiting lists that we have seen in the NHS. We can see it in waiting lists for A&E, …
A look at the economic impact of falling house prices. Readers Question: Explain why a decrease in the price of houses can lead the economy to experience a recession. In summary: falling house prices reduce consumers’ main form of wealth. This tends to cause lower spending and lower economic growth due to a negative wealth …
Over the next few decades, the Indian economy is forecast to become one of the world’s fastest-growing economies – adding an estimated $400bn a year to its GDP. During the twentieth century the Indian economy often struggled to increase living standards, but in the past decade has started to throw off the shackles of colonialism, …
Interest rates are a tool of monetary policy. When the economy is overheating, the Central Bank can raise interest rates to cool demand and avoid an inflationary boom. In an ideal world, the Central Bank would make small adjustments in interest rates to fine-tune the economy and avoid booms and busts, but the situation the …
Why has the Pound Sterling been falling? The Pound has been in long term decline since after the Second World War, when £1 = $4.05. In recent decades the pound has continued to decline. In particular since the great financial crash of 2007, which hit the UK hard. In recent years, the combination of Brexit, …
In 1952 when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne, the UK was a major economic power, but still reeling from the costs of the Second World War, with rationing and austerity still visible. The post-war period saw a remarkable rising living standards, strong economic growth and radical changes in the economy, but also saw …
Earlier this year, the World Bank warned up to 40 nations are at risk of defaulting on their sovereign debt. Already Sri Lanka, once hailed as an economic jewel, has badly defaulted as the country slides into economic turmoil. But, the bank warns many others, such as El Salvador, Ghana, Tunisia, Egypt, Kenya and Argentina …
A recession is a period with a significant decline in economic activity characterised by falling GDP, rising unemployment and a decline in real incomes. A quick and simple definition of a recession (used in the UK and EU) is – negative economic growth for two consecutive quarters. The US uses a more comprehensive definition of …