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The multiplier principle indicates that if business decision makers become more optimistic about the future and, as a result, increase their investment expenditures by $82 billion, real GDP
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will increase by more than $82 billion if the economy was initially operating well below capacity.
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Rather than seeking to balance the budget, Keynesian economists argue that the government's tax and spending policies should be determined by the
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level of aggregate demand required to achieve full employment of resources.
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If an economy were experiencing a high rate of unemployment as the result of weak aggregate demand, a Keynesian economist would be most likely to recommend
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a reduction in taxes, without any offsetting reduction in government expenditures
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Which of the following is a problem with discretionary fiscal policy as an economic stabilization tool?
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It is difficult to properly time discretionary changes in fiscal policy.
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Within the Keynesian model, if the output of an economy is less than the full-employment level, then
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output will tend to remain below full-employment capacity unless aggregate expenditures increase.
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A major advantage of built-in or automatic stabilizers is that they
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require no Congressional action to be effective.
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As the marginal propensity to consume (MPC) decreases, the spending multiplier
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decreases
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The marginal propensity to consume is defined as the
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proportion of any change in income that is spent on consumption.
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Within the Keynesian model, if the marginal propensity to consume is 0.8, which of the following is true?
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When investment increases by $1, income increases by $5.
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The primary tool of fiscal policy is
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the federal budget.
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When the federal government is running a budget deficit,
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government expenditures exceed government revenues.
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Which of the following best expresses the central idea of countercyclical fiscal policy?
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Deficits are planned during economic recessions, and surpluses are utilized to restrain inflationary booms.
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According to Keynesian analysis, which of the following policy combinations would most likely to move the economy in recession to full employment?
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increase in government purchases and reduction in taxes
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The crowding-out effect suggests that
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a reduction in private spending that results from higher interest rates caused by a budget deficit will largely offset the expansionary effects of the deficit
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If a fiscal policy change is going to exert a stabilizing impact on the economy, it must
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add demand stimulus during a slowdown but restraint during an economic boom.
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Keynesians and non-Keynesians would largely agree on which one of the following statements?
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Proper timing of discretionary fiscal policy is difficult to achieve.
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The persistence of budget deficits during the last several decades is not surprising because politicians will find
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budget deficits more attractive than budget surpluses.
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Other things being constant, countries with higher rates of saving
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will have higher rates of investment and growth.
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If the government ran a major budget deficit, and there was no noticeable effect on the level of GDP, this could be taken as evidence of
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crowding-out.
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Money is
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whatever is generally accepted in exchange for goods and services.
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In the United States, the purchasing power of money is determined by
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Federal Reserve policy, which controls the money supply.
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Ordinary commercial banks can expand the supply of money by
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using a portion of their deposits to extend additional loans.
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Suppose the Fed purchases $100 million of U.S. securities from the public. If the reserve requirement is 20 percent, the currency holdings of the public are unchanged, and banks have zero excess reserves both before and after the transaction, the total impact on the money supply will be a
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$500 million increase in the money supply.
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The primary benefit of a monetary system of exchange compared to a barter system is the increased
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efficiency in arranging transactions.
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If money were not used as a medium of exchange,
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the gains from trade would be severely limited.
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Fiat money is money
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that has little intrinsic value and is not backed by a commodity.
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Money is used as a unit of account. This means
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money is used to measure the exchange value and costs of goods, services, assets and resources.
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A system that permits banks to hold less than 100 percent of their deposits as reserves is called a
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fractional reserve banking system.
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The legal requirement that commercial banks hold reserves equal to some fraction of their deposits
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limits the ability of banks to expand the money supply by extending additional loans.
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The fraction that banks must, by law, hold as reserves against the checking deposits of their customers is called the
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required reserve ratio.
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Excess reserves of banks equal
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actual reserves minus required reserves.
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The federal funds rate is the interest rate paid when
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one bank borrows reserves from another bank.
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The major overall purpose of the Federal Reserve System is to
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regulate the money supply and, thereby, provide a monetary climate that is in the best
interest of the economy.
interest of the economy.
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During 2008-2013, the Fed initiated several rounds of "quantitative easing." Under this policy, the Fed
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increased its purchases of financial assets and thereby injected additional reserves into the banking system.
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During 2001-2004, the Fed injected additional reserves into the banking system, which reduced the federal funds rate and other short-term interest rates. Other things constant, what is the most likely short-run impact of this policy?
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an increase in aggregate demand and real GDP
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Cross country data illustrates that rapid expansion in the supply of money over a lengthy period of time (for example, a decade) leads to
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high rates of inflation.
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If the Federal Reserve increases its bond purchases, the short-run effects will be
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an increase in the money supply and lower real interest rates.
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When the Fed decreases the money supply, interest rates
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rise.
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An unexpected increase in the supply of money will
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reduce the real rate of interest and, thereby, trigger an increase in current spending by households and businesses.
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If the Fed wanted to institute a more expansionary monetary policy, which of the following would it be most likely to do?
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buy government bonds from the public
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If the Fed unexpectedly shifts to a more restrictive monetary policy, which of the following will most likely occur in the short run?
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b. an increase in unemployment
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If the Federal Reserve unexpectedly decides to sell bonds, which of the following will most likely happen in the short run?
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The supply of loanable funds will decrease, which will exert upward pressure on the interest rate.
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The short-run impact of the Fed unexpectedly shifting to a more restrictive monetary policy will be (graph)
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a decrease in aggregate demand and a decrease in real output
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Most economists believe that
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a monetary policy that achieves price stability will reduce uncertainty and provide the framework for strong economic growth.
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Economic growth is important because expansion in the output of goods and services
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makes it possible for individuals to consume more and achieve higher living standards