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The Financial Crisis Of 2007-2008 Fading

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Introduction:

Hitherto, an abundance of economic literature exists concerning the determination of asset returns. With the footprint of the financial crisis of 2007-2008 fading, renewed interest of this topic has flourished, as both economists and politicians seek to enhance the understanding of the dynamic relations that exist between asset returns and a series of other economic indicators. Prior to the crisis, the availability of credit expanded significantly due to favourable market conditions. As a result, commercial banks increased substantially the volume of sub-prime mortgages being offered to borrowers. In practise despite misconceptions, “Whenever a bank makes a loan, it simultaneously creates a matching deposit in the borrower’s bank account, thereby creating new money” (McLeay, Radia and Thomas, 2014, pp.1).

In the period of 2000-2007, it is estimated that banks created over £1 trillion through their issuance of loans to borrowers prior to the crisis (Positive Money, 2014). Consequently, the impact of such a credit expansion caused real assets, such as house prices, to increase as a result of the increased demand. Similarly, through the same mechanism, an expansion of credit also caused increases in the values of securities tied to U.S real estate (i.e. mortgage-backed securities), as investors believed that house prices would continue to rise. Furthermore, one might postulate that changes in economic variables, such as the money supply or rate of inflation,

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