1. In 4-5 paragraphs, discuss the history of the US economy including productivity, growth, markets and government regulations.
2. In 2-3 paragraphs explain GDP: what items are included & excluded and why intermediate goods and services are usually not included directly in GDP.
3. Rank, i.e. list, the following in order of increasing (from negative to positive) cross – price elasticity of demand with coffee. Explain your reasoning.
- Bleach
- Tea
- Cream
- Cola
4. In 3-4 paragraphs, provide examples and discuss how the “Rules of the Game” impact the US economic growth and productivity. What current US economic Rules of the Game are impacting economic growth today?
5. In 2-3 paragraphs, discuss how markets coordinate the
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Millions were out of work. The government began public works projects to help bring growth back to the economy
World War II brought the US out of this period of slow growth. The military needed tanks, planes, guns, and everything else needed for the war effort. People were either back to work or overseas fighting. Production and growth rates reached new highs.
At the end of the war, growth continued through the seventies. People were seeing a better standard of living that ever before. Highways ran across the nation, and people bought cars to travel for fun.
Later, the seventies brought an economic downturn, which did not last too long. Technology was no the horizon, bringing things like the mini transistor, and eventually the microchip. This brought on a new revolution. Companies promised paperless offices and copy machines replaced secretaries. Eventually computers increased production in offices and factories. Growth opportunities in semiconductors spawned new markets and even new areas like Silicon Valley.
The most recent breakthrough is the internet. It brought any information to anyone, in an instant. Productivity skyrocketed in areas like research and development and for researching mid term exams on economics, particularly on questions about the history of the US economy.
While this is a quick recap of production and growth over the past 200 years, it is not over.
Companies that were going bankrupt months before were now literally begging for labourers and some even suffered from a shortage of workers. This was mainly due to the rapid production levels the country needed to produce military equipment including ammunition and vehicles etc. A short time after the U.S. declaration of war, the unemployment rate dropped a massive ten per cent from its previous amount. After taxes, business profits almost doubled and industrial output increased massively at 96 per cent. Government expenditure also sored dramatically to 53 per cent of GDP at its peak in 1945, in comparison to around 20 per cent of GDP previous to the war. This contributed to business recovery and gave companies the kick start they needed. Due to productivity doubling, consumer goods also expanded. The war consumed one third of industrial output and this ensured a constant supply of goods, the U.S being the only country with a significant rise in supply despite rationing. Wages also rose 50 per cent higher by 1944, this was a combination of over-time pay and wage increases etc.
However, when the defeat of Japan and Germany occurred, it caused the termination of their cars being imported into the United States because their country was heading towards destruction. Baby boomers was another contributor to expanding the American economy. Baby boomers positively impacted our economy because previously there was a decrease in birth rates due to soldiers serving in World War II. Once the war ended, soldiers were able to come home to their wives, which lead to an increase of birth rates. Since more babies were being produced, there were bigger families being established. This caused the bigger families to relocate from a city based environment to a suburban home. This created more jobs because there needed to be workers to build these suburban homes. Since the population increased from the rapid growth of birth rate, it caused a demand for consumer goods. Industries saw the opportunity to produce specific. This caused the economy to expand because it created a massive upbringing of supply production that pertained to a certain crowd. The GI Bill was a law that gave aids to veterans after WWII. It
So after that caused people out of jobs, then that led to people saying the government wasn't handling the economic policy.
Because of the guns and bombs that were being sold to our allies and the U.S. buying supplies that were needed to make the guns and bombs the U.S. was getting richer, with the amount of money the U.S. made it recovered from The Great Depression quickly. But not everything was so great because the taxes on the basic things that a person needed went up and some of America's personal money was being use. In just 6 years of being in the war the United States purchased about $186 billion dollars worth of war bonds.
The technological progress had made changes in several areas starting to produce new type of machinery, meantime developing new methods of producing textile, source of energy, even to transmit messages on a long distances.
he Depression was ended and prosperity restored, by the fast reductions in spending, taxes and regulation at the end of World War II. Statistics showed a rise in GDP during the war. "But that just reflects misdefined statistical analysis. The military guns, tanks, ships, and planes produced and counted as showing rising GDP did not reflect improved standards of living for working people, or anyone else."4
World War II brought difficulties in the economic side of things. When the war ended, reduction in the consumption meant that less jobs for the people. Additionally, Americans’ were unemployable because of jobs not being
As Roosevelt shifted the economy from peacetime to wartime, seventeen million new jobs got created. COrporate taxes were doubled and productivity increased by ninety-six percentage. People were also benefited from this as a worker would earn fifty percent more than he would on 1939. Blacks and women entered workforce and with GI bill the foundation for postwar situation was lead. At that time, government purchased one half of materials produced by people. The prices were regulated by government and companies produced materials needed for war. Roosevelt mobilized factories, mines and shops .he was able to create a spirit and desire among companies to produce better than its competitors to serve for their country. The shipyards which took 365
Preceding the war, there was recession up until 1921. A decade of prosperity led to a booming consumer culture. The American recession following the war allowed the economy to pick up and stand strong. This was
Change is everywhere, the Second Industrial Revolution was an example of this change with an emphasis on technology between 1880-1914. During this time there was mass politics, steel, electricity, and chemicals creating a mass economy. Steel mills were most important, producing cheap steel fast, as well as an advantage to those who were preparing for war or any military advancement. Electricity was available to all, revolutionizing the work industry, homes, and changing the fuel factor where there was no longer coal being produced as much. Lastly chemicals, specifically chemical fertilizers which meant no more famines, larger crop yields, paper, plastics, and glass were all manufactured quick and cheap. Each of these were not only part of the
In the end, it was World War II that brought us out of the Great Depression. With war at hand, the government began pumping massive amounts of money into the economy. Production and inflation increased. More jobs were available and wages rose. At the
When World War II came to an end in 1945 the soldiers returned to a different country: Wartime destruction had crippled the industries of many major powers, leaving America with a monopoly on global production, jobs were easy to find and wages were higher due to a pent up need for laborers (see appendix
People had more money, industrial revolution, the war, the post war recovery, airplane industry, in the 80’s
1b.1940- 1945 saw the economy of the nation at a very high government spending GDP at 43% and revenue at 20%, meaning the government was spending more money than it was making, this might be due to the great depression that followed the post war, slow economic growth, high unemployment but the government was spending on defense programs and weapons needed to keep the people and country safe. By 1950- 65 spending and revenue was about the same. Although productivity never returned to peak levels,
“Outline the differences between economic growth and economic development. Discuss how economic development may be measured. Outline how globalisation may impact upon a nation’s development. Where appropriate make reference to a relevant case study.”