海南大学：《西方经济学》课程试卷解答（宏观经济学）2006-2007宏观经济学（B）答案.doc_大学文库

海南大学2006-07学年度第2学期《宏观经济学》答案(B卷) Please answer the Questions(每题10分，共同100分) 1.Consider how each of the following events is likely to affect real GDP.Do you think the change in real gdpreflects a similar change in economic well-being? a.A hurricane in Florida forces Disney World to shut down for a nth. b.The dise veryofa new,easy-o-grow strain of wheat increases farm harvests c.Increased hostility between unions and management sparks a rash of strikes d.Firms throughout the economy experience falling demand,causing them to lay off workers. e.Congress passes new environmental laws that prohibit firms from using iction meth that emit large quan titi s of F 00 0n tudents drop out of school to take jobs mowing lawns. g.Fathers around the country reduce their workweeks to spend more time with their children. any services while it is closed income of workers and shareholders of Disney falls(the income side of the national accounts),and people's consumption of Disney falls(the expenditure side of the national accounts). b.Real GDP rise he ase the original capital and labor in farm production no produce more wheat.This s corresponds to an increase in the econor mic well-bein ofsociety,since people can now consume more wheat.(If people do not want to consume more wheat then farmers and farmland can be shifted to producing other goods that society values.) c.Real GDPfalls because with fewer workers on the job,firms produce less.This fall in d.Real GDP falls because the firms that lay off workers produce less.This decreases economic well-being because workers'incomes fall(the income side), and there are fewer goods for people to buy(the expenditure side). e.Real GDP is likely to fallas firms shift toward production methods that goods bat ci polltion Pconomic welLbeing bowever omy now produces less measured output but more clean air;clea air is nottraded in markets and,thus,does not show up in measured GDP,but is nevertheless a good that people value. f.Real GDP rises because the high-school students go from an activity in which they are not producing market goods and services to one in which they are. 0m -being.however may decrease.In ideal nati accoun ndi school would show up as investment because it presumably increases the future productivity of the worker.Actual national accounts do not measure this type of invest ment.Note also that future GDP may be lower than it would be if the students staved in schoolsince the future work force will be less educated

海南大学 2006-07 学年度第 2 学期《宏观经济学》答案(B 卷) Please answer the Questions（每题 10 分，共同 100 分） 1. Consider how each of the following events is likely to affect real GDP.Do you think the change in real GDP reflects a similar change in economic well-being? a.A hurricane in Florida forces Disney World to shut down for a month. b.The discovery of a new,easy-to-grow strain of wheat increases farm harvests. c.Increased hostility between unions and management sparks a rash of strikes. d. Firms throughout the economy experience falling demand,causing them to lay off workers. e. Congress passes new environmental laws that prohibit firms from using production methods that emit large quantities of pollution. f. More high-school students drop out of school to take jobs mowing lawns. g. Fathers around the country reduce their workweeks to spend more time with their children. 1.a.Real GDP falls because Disney does not produce any services while it is closed. This corresponds to a decrease in economic well-being because the income of workers and shareholders of Disney falls(the income side of the national accounts), and people’s consumption of Disney falls(the expenditure side of the national accounts). b.Real GDP rises because the original capital and labor in farm production now produce more wheat.This corresponds to an increase in the economic well-being ofsociety,since people can now consume more wheat.(If people do not want to consume more wheat,then farmers and farmland can be shifted to producing other goods that society values.) c.Real GDP falls because with fewer workers on the job,firms produce less.This accurately reflects a fall in economic well-being. d.Real GDP falls because the firms that lay off workers produce less.This decreases economic well-being because workers’incomes fall(the income side), and there are fewer goods for people to buy(the expenditure side). e.Real GDP is likely to fall,as firms shift toward production methods that produce fewer goods but emit less pollution.Economic well-being,however,may rise.The economy now produces less measured output but more clean air;clean air is nottraded in markets and,thus,does not show up in measured GDP,but is nevertheless a good that people value. f.Real GDP rises because the high-school students go from an activity in which they are not producing market goods and services to one in which they are. Economic well-being,however,may decrease.In ideal national accounts,attending school would show up as investment because it presumably increases the future productivity of the worker.Actual national accounts do not measure this type of invest ment.Note also that future GDP may be lower than it would be if the students stayed in school,since the future work force will be less educated

g.Measured real GDP falls because fathers spend ls time producing market goods and services.The actual production of goods and services need not hav fallen however.Measured production(what the fathers are paid to do)falls,but unmeasured production of child-rearing services rises. 2.Explain the difference between government purchases and transfer payments. Give two examples of each 2.Government purchases are those goods and services purchased directly by the government.For example,the government buys missiles and tanks,builds roads,and provides 11 services such as air traffic control.All of these activities payments to individuals exchange for goods or services. They are the opposite of taxes:taxes reduce household disposable income,whereas transfer payments increase it.Examples of transfer payments include Social Security payments to the elderly,unemployment insurance,and veterans'benefits. 3.What are the three functior s of money?Which of the functions do the following items satisfy?Which do they not satisfy? a.A credit card b.A painting by Rembrandt c.A subway token 3.Money functions as a store of value,a medium of exchange,and a unit of account. a.A credit card can serve as a medium of exchange because it is accepted in exchange for goods and services.A credit card is.arguablv.a(negative)store of can acc umulate debt with itA c edit card is not a unit of wRaeeoM st 5 VISA cards c.A subway token,within the subway system,satisfies all three functions of money. Yet outside the subway system,it is not widely used as a unit of account or a medium of exchange,so it is not a form of money 4.Describe the difference between frictional unemployment and structual unemployment. 4.Frictional unemployment is the unemployment caused by the time it takes to match worker nd iobs.e inding appr e job takes tim use the flow about job can d job vacancies is not instantaneous Because different jobs require different skills and pay different wages, unemployed workers may not accept the first job offer they receive.In contrast, wait unemployment is the unemployment resulting from wage rigidity and job rationing.These workers are unemployed not because they are actively searching

g.Measured real GDP falls because fathers spend less time producing market goods and services.The actual production of goods and services need not have fallen however.Measured production(what the fathers are paid to do)falls,but unmeasured production of child-rearing services rises. 2.Explain the difference between government purchases and transfer payments. Give two examples of each. 2.Government purchases are those goods and services purchased directly by the government. For example, the government buys missiles and tanks,builds roads,and provides 11 services such as air traffic control. All of these activities are part of GDP. Transfer payments are government payments to individuals that are not in exchange for goods or services. They are the opposite of taxes:taxes reduce household disposable income, whereas transfer payments increase it.Examples of transfer payments include Social Security payments to the elderly,unemployment insurance,and veterans’benefits. 3.What are the three functions of money? Which of the functions do the following items satisfy? Which do they not satisfy? a.A credit card b.A painting by Rembrandt c.A subway token 3.Money functions as a store of value,a medium of exchange,and a unit of account. a.A credit card can serve as a medium of exchange because it is accepted in exchange for goods and services.A credit card is,arguably,a(negative)store of value because you can accumulate debt with it.A credit card is not a unit of account—a car,for example,does not cost 5 VISA cards. b.A Rembrandt painting is a store of value only. c.A subway token,within the subway system,satisfies all three functions of money. Yet outside the subway system,it is not widely used as a unit of account or a medium of exchange,so it is not a form of money. 4.Describe the difference between frictional unemployment and structual unemployment. 4. Frictional unemployment is the unemployment caused by the time it takes to match workers and jobs.Finding an appropriate job takes time because the flow of information about job candidates and job vacancies is not instantaneous. Because different jobs require different skills and pay different wages, unemployed workers may not accept the first job offer they receive. In contrast, wait unemployment is the unemployment resulting from wage rigidity and job rationing. These workers are unemployed not because they are actively searching

for a iob that best suits their skills (as in the case of frictional unemployment) but because at the prev ailing real wag supply of lab r ex the wage does s not adjust to clear the labor market,then workers mus "wait"for jobs to become available.Wait unemployment thus arises because firms fail to reduce wages despite an excess supply of labor. 5.The 1983 Economic Report of the President contained the followir statement: "D evoting a larger share of national output to inve nt would help resto rapid productivity growth and rising living standards."Do you agree with this claim?Explain. 5.Suppose the economy begins with an initial steady-state capital stock below the Golden Rule level.The ediate share of tio output to investment is that the economy devotes a smaller sharet sumption that is,"living standards"as measured by consumption fall.The higher investment rate means that the capital stock increases more quickly,so the growth rates of output and output per worker rise.The productivity of workers is the age am produ that is productivity growth rises.Hence,the er worker mmediate effect is that living standard fall but productivity growth rises.In the new steady state,output grows at rate n+g,while output per worker grows at rate g.This means that in the steady state,productivity growth is independent of the rate of investment.Since we begin with an initial st ady-state capital stock below the Golden Rule level,the higher nvestmer rate means that the new steady state has a higher level of consumption,so living standards are higher.Thus,an increase in the investment rate increases the productivity growth rate in the short run but has no effect in the long run.Living standards,on the other hand,fall immediately and only rise over time.That is,the quotation emphasizes growth,but not the sacrifice required to achieve it. 6.List three policy rules that the Fed might follow.Which of these would vou advocate?Why? 6.One policy rule that the Fed might follow is toallow the money supply to grow at a rate Monetarist economists believe that most large fluctua s in the economy result from fluctuations in the money supply hence a rule of steady money government would prevent these large fluctuations. A second policy rule is a nominal GDP target.Under this rule,the Fed would announce a planned path for nominal GDPIf nominal GDP were below this target.for example. the Fed we oney growth to stir aggrega“ demand taki advantage of this policy rule is that it would allow monetary policy to adjust to change in the velocity of money. A third policy rule is a target for the price level.The Fed would announce planned path for the price level and adjust the money supply when the actual level deviated from its

for a job that best suits their skills (as in the case of frictional unemployment), but because at the prevailing real wage the supply of labor exceeds the demand.If the wage does not adjust to clear the labor market,then these workers must “wait” for jobs to become available. Wait unemployment thus arises because firms fail to reduce wages despite an excess supply of labor. 5.The 1983 Economic Report of the President contained the following statement: “Devoting a larger share of national output to investment would help restore rapid productivity growth and rising living standards.’’ Do you agree with this claim? Explain. 5.Suppose the economy begins with an initial steady-state capital stock below the Golden Rule level. The immediate effect of devoting a larger share of national output to investment is that the economy devotes a smaller share to consumption; that is, “living standards” as measured by consumption fall. The higher investment rate means that the capital stock increases more quickly,so the growth rates of output and output per worker rise. The productivity of workers is the average amount produced by each worker—that is, output per worker. So productivity growth rises. Hence, the immediate effect is that living standards fall but productivity growth rises. In the new steady state,output grows at rate n+g,while output per worker grows at rate g. This means that in the steady state,productivity growth is independent of the rate of investment.Since we begin with an initial steady-state capital stock below the Golden Rule level,the higher investment rate means that the new steady state has a higher level of consumption,so living standards are higher. Thus, an increase in the investment rate increases the productivity growth rate in the short run but has no effect in the long run. Living standards,on the other hand, fall immediately and only rise over time. That is,the quotation emphasizes growth, but not the sacrifice required to achieve it. 6.List three policy rules that the Fed might follow. Which of these would you advocate? Why? 6.One policy rule that the Fed might follow is to allow the money supply to grow at a stant rate.Monetarist economists believe that most large fluctuations in the economy result from fluctuations in the money supply;hence,a rule of steady money government would prevent these large fluctuations. A second policy rule is a nominal GDP target.Under this rule,the Fed would announce a planned path for nominal GDP.If nominal GDP were below this target. for example, the Fed would increase money growth to stimulate aggregate demand taking advantage of this policy rule is that it would allow monetary policy to adjust to change in the velocity of money. A third policy rule is a target for the price level.The Fed would announce planned path for the price level and adjust the money supply when the actual level deviated from its

target.ne believes that price stabilityis the primary goal of monetary policy 7.The cyclically adjusted budget deficit is the budget deficit corrected for the effects of the business cycle.In other words,it is the budget deficit that the would be running if employment were at th natural rate.(It called the ful-employment budget defictomemhaveproposed the rule that the cyclically adjusted budget deficit always be balanced.Compare this proposal to a strict balanced-budget rule.Which is preferable?What problems do you see with the rule requiring a balanced cyclically adjusted budget? 7.A rule requiring a cyclically adjusted balanced budget has the potential toovercome. at least partially,the first two objections to a balanced-budget rule that were raised in this chapter.First,this rule allows the govemment to run countercyclical fiscal policy in order to stabilize the economy.That is the govemment can rn deficits during ons,when taxe s automatica and expenditur es auto ally ris automatic stabilizers affect the deficit but not the cyclically adjusted deficit Second,this rule allows the government to smooth tax rates across years whenincome is especially low or high-it is not necessary to raise tax rates in recessions or to cut them in booms. On the other hand this rule only pa rtially overcom objections,since the government can only run a deficit of a certain size,wh hich might not be big enough Also.a cyclically ad justed balanced budget does not allow the government to smooth tax rates across years when expenditure is especially high or low,as in times of war or peace.(We might take account of this by allowing an exemption from the balanced budget rule special war.)This ule does not allow the government t to overcome the third ralse d in the chapter,sinc the government cannot shift the burden of expenditure from one generation to anothe when this is warranted.Finally,a serious problem with a rule requiring a balanced cyclically adjusted budget is that we do not directly observe this budget.That is.we need to estimate how far we are from full employment then we need to estimate how s and t xes would differ if we were at this full-employme level.None of 8.One study found that the elderly who do not have children dissave at about the same rate as the elderly who do have children.What might this finding imply about the reason the elderly do not dissave as much as the life. -cycle model predicts? 8.In this chapter,we discussed two explanations for why the elderly do not dissave as rapidly as the life-cvcle model predicts First because of the possibility of unpredictable and costly events,they may keep some precautionary saving as a buffer

target.This rule makes sense if one believes that price stability is the primary goal of monetary policy. 7.The cyclically adjusted budget deficit is the budget deficit corrected for the effects of the business cycle. In other words,it is the budget deficit that the government would be running if unemployment were at the natural rate.(It is also called the full-employment budget deficit.)Some economists have proposed the rule that the cyclically adjusted budget deficit always be balanced.Compare this proposal to a strict balanced-budget rule.Which is preferable?What problems do you see with the rule requiring a balanced cyclically adjusted budget? 7.A rule requiring a cyclically adjusted balanced budget has the potential to overcome, at least partially,the first two objections to a balanced-budget rule that were raised in this chapter.First,this rule allows the government to run countercyclical fiscal policy in order to stabilize the economy.That is,the government can run deficits during recessions,when taxes automatically fall and expenditures automatically rise. These automatic stabilizers affect the deficit but not the cyclically adjusted deficit. Second,this rule allows the government to smooth tax rates across years whenincome is especially low or high—it is not necessary to raise tax rates in recessions or to cut them in booms. On the other hand,this rule only partially overcomes these two objections,since the government can only run a deficit of a certain size,which might not be big enough. Also,a cyclically adjusted balanced budget does not allow the government to smooth tax rates across years when expenditure is especially high or low,as in times of war or peace.(We might take account of this by allowing an exemption from the balanced budget rule in special circumstances such as war.)This rule does not allow the government to overcome the third objection raised in the chapter,since the government cannot shift the burden of expenditure from one generation to another when this is warranted. Finally,a serious problem with a rule requiring a balanced cyclically adjusted budget is that we do not directly observe this budget.That is,we need to estimate how far we are from full employment;then we need to estimate how expenditures and taxes would differ if we were at this full-employment level.None of these estimates can be made precisely. 8.One study found that the elderly who do not have children dissave at about the same rate as the elderly who do have children.What might this finding imply about the reason the elderly do not dissave as much as the life-cycle model predicts? 8.In this chapter,we discussed two explanations for why the elderly do not dissave as rapidly as the life-cycle model predicts.First,because of the possibility of unpredictable and costly events,they may keep some precautionary saving as a buffer

in case they live longer than expected or have large medical bills.Second,they may ant to leave eques s to their children,relatives,or charities,so again,they do no ssave all of their wealth during retirement. If the elderly who do not have children dissave at the same rate as the elderly who do have children this seems to imply that the reason for low dissaving is the precautionary motive the bequest motive is presumably stronger for people who have children than for those who don't.An altemative interpre children do t increase de red savin For example having children t on is tha bequest motive,but it may also lower the precautionary motive:you can rely on your children in case of financial emergency.Perhaps the two effects on saving cancel each other. 9Explain different between portfolio and transctions theories of money demand 9.Portfolio theories of money demand emphasize the role of money as a store of value These theories stress that people hold money in their portfolio because it offers a safe nominal return.Therefore,portfolio theories suggest that the demand for money ofm iportiolo as well as all the other eople hold wealth because wealth measures the overall size of the portfolio. In contrast transactions theories of money demand stress the role of money as a medium of exchange.These theories stress that people hold money in order to make purchases.The demand for money depends on the cost of holding money(the interes rate)and t山 e benefit(the ease of ma king trans sactions)Money deman ,therefore depends negatively on the interest rate and positively on income. 2.What are the four central disagreements in the debate over real business cycle theory? 2.There are four central disagreements in the debate over real business cycle theory These disagreements have not yet been settled,and,as a result,they remain areas of active research these areas are i.The interpretation of the labor market.Over the business cycle,the unemploy- ment rate v varies widely.Advocates of real business cycle theory believe that fluc tuations in employment result from changes in the amount people want to work by assumption the economy is always on the labor supply curve.They believe that unemployment statistics are difficult to interpret for at least two reasons:first, people may claim to be unemploved to collect unemployment-insurance benefits: second,the unemployed might be willing to work if they were offered the wage Critics think that fluc ment d not just that people want to work They believe that the hish nemployment years rate in recessions suggests that the labor market does not clear-that is,that the wage does not adjust to equilibrate labor supply and labor demand. ii.The importance oftechnology shocks Real business cycle advocates assume that

in case they live longer than expected or have large medical bills.Second,they may want to leave bequests to their children,relatives,or charities,so again,they do not dissave all of their wealth during retirement. If the elderly who do not have children dissave at the same rate as the elderly who do have children,this seems to imply that the reason for low dissaving is the precautionary motive;the bequest motive is presumably stronger for people who have children than for those who don’t. An alternative interpretation is that perhaps having children does not increase desired saving.For example,having children raises the bequest motive,but it may also lower the precautionary motive:you can rely on your children in case of financial emergency.Perhaps the two effects on saving cancel each other. 9 Explain different between portfolio and transctions theories of money demand. 9.Portfolio theories of money demand emphasize the role of money as a store of value. These theories stress that people hold money in their portfolio because it offers a safe nominal return.Therefore,portfolio theories suggest that the demand for money depends on the risk and return of money as well as all the other assets that people hold in their portfolios.In addition,the demand for money depends on total wealth because wealth measures the overall size of the portfolio. In contrast,transactions theories of money demand stress the role of money as a medium of exchange.These theories stress that people hold money in order to make purchases.The demand for money depends on the cost of holding money(the interestrate)and the benefit(the ease of making transactions).Money demand,therefore, depends negatively on the interest rate and positively on income. 2.What are the four central disagreements in the debate over real business cycle theory? 2.There are four central disagreements in the debate over real business cycle theory. These disagreements have not yet been settled,and,as a result,they remain areas of active research.These areas are: i.The interpretation of the labor market.Over the business cycle,the unemployment rate varies widely.Advocates of real business cycle theory believe that fluctuations in employment result from changes in the amount people want to work— by assumption,the economy is always on the labor supply curve.They believe that unemployment statistics are difficult to interpret for at least two reasons:first, people may claim to be unemployed to collect unemployment-insurance benefits; second,the unemployed might be willing to work if they were offered the wage they receive in most years. Critics think that fluctuations in employment do not just reflect the amount that people want to work.They believe that the high unemployment rate in recessions suggests that the labor market does not clear—that is,that the wage does not adjust to equilibrate labor supply and labor demand. ii.The importance of technology shocks.Real business cycle advocates assume that