Transcript 2010 FRQ

Norman
1. Assume that the U.S. economy is currently in long-run equilibrium.
(a) Draw a correctly labeled graph of aggregate demand and aggregate supply and
show each of the following.
(i) The long-run aggregate supply curve
(ii) The current equilibrium output & price levels, labeled as YE and PLE, respectively.
LRAS SRAS
AD1
PL2
PLE
E2
E1
YE YI
AD2
Real GDP
(b) Assume that the government increases spending on national defense without
raising taxes.
(i) On your graph in part (a), show how the government action affects AD.
(ii) How will this government action affect the unemployment rate in the short run?
Explain.
Answer: 1. (b) (i) As can be seen on the graph, the increase in G would increase
AD to AD2, increasing PL and Y.
1. (b) (II) The increase in AD to AD2 would decrease unemployment in
the short run, as the increase in AD would lead to an increase in output & profits,
resulting in more workers being hired and therefore the decrease in unemployment.
1. (c) Assume that the economy adjusts to a new long-run equilibrium after the
increase in government spending.
(i) How will the short-run aggregate supply curve in the new long-run equilibrium
compare with that in the initial long-run equilibrium in part (a) ? Explain.
(ii) On your graph in part (a), label the new long-run equilibrium price level as PL2.
LRAS
SRAS2 SRAS1
PL2
PLE
E2
E1
AD
YE YI
Real GDP
Answer: 1. (c) (i) The increase in AD will result in more inflation and workers
demanding higher wages. This increase in resource cost at contract time in
the long run would move the SRAS to the left.
(c) (ii) PL2, as shown on the above graph, is a higher PL than PLE.
1. (d) In order to finance the increase in government spending on national defense from
part (b), the government borrows funds from the public. Using a correctly labeled
graph of the loanable funds market, show the effect of the government’s borrowing
on the real interest rate.
(e) Given the change in the real interest rate in part (d), what is the impact on each of
the following?
(i) Investment
Mankiw users: Increasing
(ii) Economic growth rate. Explain.
government borrowing reduces
D2
the supply of private loanable
funds. Interest Rates would also
D1
S
go up, and investment would
decrease.
Real Interest Rate, (%)
LFM
r2
r1
E2
E1
F1 F2
Quantity of Loanable Funds
Answer to 1. (d) As can be shown in the graph, the government borrowing would
increase demand for money in the LFM and push the RIR up.
1. (e) (i) The higher RIR will result in less investment in tools and machinery.
(e) (ii) The decrease in tools and machinery will decrease overall productivity
and economic growth [capital stock].
Nominal Interest Rate
2. A drop in credit card fees causes people to use credit cards more
often for transactions and demand less money.
(a) Using a correctly labeled graph of the money market, show how the nominal
interest rate will be affected.
(b) Given the interest rate change in part (a), what will happen to bond prices in the
short run?
Dm
1
Answer to 2. (a) The decrease in Dt for money
would decrease the Dm curve resulting in a
lower NIR and RIR.
2. (b) Bond prices are inverse to the interest
rate so bond prices would increase
MS
n1
n2
Dm
2
Money Market
Answer to 2. (c) The lower IR will increase
AD due to more investment and interest
sensitive consumption [the lower IR would
also depreciate the dollar and increase Xn].
All 3 cause an increase in AD & PL in the SR.
2. (d) Selling bonds would be the OMO as
it would increase NIR and decrease AD & PL.
(c) Given the interest rate change in part (a), what will happen to the price level in the
short run? Explain.
(d) Identify an open-market operation the Fed could use to keep the nominal interest
rate constant at the level that existed before the drop in credit card fees. Explain.
3. A United States firm sells $10 million worth of goods to a firm in Argentina,
where the currency is the peso.
(a) How will the transaction above affect Argentina’s aggregate demand?
Explain.
(b) Assume that the United States current account balance with Argentina is
initially zero. How will the transaction above affect the United States current
account balance? Explain.
Answer to 3. (a) The selling of $10 M of U.S. goods to Argentina would
decrease Argentina’s net exports which would decrease their AD.
AD = C+I+G+X-M, when M gets larger, GDP gets smaller.
3. (b) The $10 million increase in net exports would cause a flow of $10
million worth of pesos into the U.S. [recorded as a +$10 million]
and would cause a current account balance of ZERO to become a
+$10 million surplus account balance.
Price
D1$
Peso Price of Dollar
P looking for $’s
P100
P50
S2$
S1$
Answer to 3. (c) (i): If the U.S.
decrease financial investment
$’s looking for P
in Argentina, the U.S. would
decrease their supply of
E2
D
dollars to Argentina, resulting
in a decrease in demand for
the peso.
(c) (ii) As shown on the graph,
Peso
depreciates
E1
the dollar would appreciate.
Quantity of Dollars
A
(d) The cheaper prices in the
U.S. will result in more
demand for U.S. goods and
therefore the dollar,
appreciating the dollar and
depreciating the peso.
3. (c) Using a correctly labeled graph of the foreign exchange market for the U.S. dollar,
show how a decrease in the U.S. financial investment in Argentina affects each.
(i) The supply of United States dollars
(ii) The value of the United States dollar relative to the peso
(d) Suppose that the inflation rate is 3% in the U.S. and 5% in Argentina. What will
happen to the value of the peso relative to the United States dollar as a result of
the difference in inflation rates?
Explain.
FRQs for Dummies
2010 FRQ