The Instant Economist Everything You Need to Know About How the Economy Works

by Taylor, Timothy

• ISBN13: 9780452297524
• ISBN10: 0452297524
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-01-31
• Publisher: Plume

Summary

The Only Economics Book You Will Ever Need. Economics isn't just about numbers: It's about politics, psychology, history, and so much more. We are all economists-when we work, save for the future, invest, pay taxes, and buy our groceries. Yet many of us feel lost when the subject arises. Award-winning professor Timothy Taylor tackles all the key questions and hot topics of both microeconomics and macroeconomics, including: * Why do budget deficits matter? * What exactly does the Federal Reserve do? * Does globalization take jobs away from American workers? * Why is health insurance so costly? The Instant Economistoffers the knowledge and sophistication to understand the issues- so you can understand and discuss economics on a personal, national, and global level.

Author Biography

Timothy Taylor is managing editor of the American Economics Association's Journal of Economic Perspectives. He won numerous teaching awards for his classes at Stanford University and was named a distinguished lecturer at the University of Minnesota. He lives in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
How Economists Think	p. 1
Division of Labor	p. 7
Supply and Demand	p. 12
Price Floors and Ceilings	p. 22
Elasticity	p. 27
The Labor Market and Wages	p. 34
Financial Markets and Rates of Return	p. 42
Personal Investing	p. 49
From Perfect Competition to Monopoly	p. 58
Antitrust and Competition Policy	p. 64
Regulation and Deregulation	p. 71
Negative Externalities and the Environment	p. 76
Positive Externalities and Technology	p. 81
Public Goods	p. 87
Poverty and Welfare Programs	p. 90
Inequality	p. 98
Imperfect Information and Insurance	p. 103
Corporate and Political Governance	p. 110
Macroeconomics and Gross Domestic Product	p. 118
Economic Growth	p. 124
Unemployment	p. 13 0
Inflation	p. 136
The Balance of Trade	p. 144
Aggregate Supply and Aggregate Demand	p. 152
The Unemployment-Inflation Trade-off	p. 157
Fiscal Policy and Budget Deficits	p. 163
Countercyclical Fiscal Policy	p. 170
Budget Deficits and National Saving	p. 177
Money and Banking	p. 184
The Federal Reserve and Its Powers	p. 191
The Conduct of Monetary Policy	p. 201
The Gains of International Trade	p. 210
The Debates over Protectionism	p. 217
Exchange Rates	p. 225
International Financial Crashes	p. 234
A Global Economic Perspective	p. 242
References	p. 251
Index	p. 253
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