The external balance of trade is the most essential of all the components that make up a country’s GDP. When the total value of products and services sold by local producers to foreign countries surpasses the total value of foreign goods and services purchased by domestic consumers, a country’s GDP rises. A country is said to have a trade surplus when this happens.
What factors influence GDP growth?
In general, there are two basic causes of economic growth: increase in workforce size and increase in worker productivity (output per hour worked). Both can expand the economy’s overall size, but only substantial productivity growth can boost per capita GDP and income.
How can you boost GDP growth?
- AD stands for aggregate demand (consumer spending, investment levels, government spending, exports-imports)
- AS stands for aggregate supply (Productive capacity, the efficiency of economy, labour productivity)
To increase economic growth
1. An increase in total demand
- Lower interest rates lower borrowing costs and boost consumer spending and investment.
- Increased real wages when nominal salaries rise faster than inflation, consumers have more money to spend.
- Depreciation reduces the cost of exports while raising the cost of imports, increasing domestic demand.
- Growing wealth, such as rising house values, encourages people to spend more (since they are more confident and can refinance their home).
This represents a rise in total supply (productive capacity). This can happen as a result of:
- In the nineteenth century, new technologies such as steam power and telegrams aided productivity. In the twenty-first century, the internet, artificial intelligence, and computers are all helping to boost productivity.
- Workers become more productive when new management approaches, such as better industrial relations, are introduced.
- Increased net migration, with a particular emphasis on workers with in-demand skills (e.g. builders, fruit pickers)
- Infrastructure improvements, greater education spending, and other public-sector investments are examples of public-sector investment.
To what extent can the government increase economic growth?
A government can use demand-side and supply-side policies to try to influence the rate of economic growth.
- Cutting taxes to raise disposable income and encourage spending is known as expansionary fiscal policy. Lower taxes, on the other hand, will increase the budget deficit and lead to more borrowing. When there is a drop in consumer expenditure, an expansionary fiscal policy is most appropriate.
- Cutting interest rates can promote domestic demand. Expansionary monetary policy (currently usually set by an independent Central Bank).
- Stability. The government’s primary job is to maintain economic and political stability, which allows for normal economic activity to occur. Uncertainty and political polarization can deter investment and growth.
- Infrastructure investment, such as new roads, railway lines, and broadband internet, boosts productivity and lowers traffic congestion.
Factors beyond the government’s influence
- It is difficult for the government to influence the rate of technical innovation because it tends to come from the private sector.
- The private sector is in charge of labor relations and employee motivation. At best, the government has a minimal impact on employee morale and motivation.
- Entrepreneurs are primarily self-motivated when it comes to starting a firm. Government restrictions and tax rates can have an impact on a business owner’s willingness to take risks.
- The amount of money saved has an impact on growth (e.g. see Harrod-Domar model) Higher savings enable higher investment, yet influencing savings might be difficult for the government.
- Willingness to put forth the effort. The vanquished countries of Germany and Japan had fast economic development in the postwar period, indicating a desire to rebuild after the war. The UK economy was less dynamic, which could be due to different views toward employment and a willingness to try new things.
- Any economy is influenced significantly by global growth. It is extremely difficult for a single economy to avoid the costs of a global recession. The credit crunch of 2009, for example, had a detrimental impact on economic development in OECD countries.
In 2009, the United States, France, and the United Kingdom all went into recession. The greater recovery in the United States, on the other hand, could be attributed to different governmental measures. 2009/10 fiscal policy was expansionary, and monetary policy was looser.
Governments frequently overestimate their ability to boost productivity growth. Without government intervention, the private sector drives the majority of technological advancement. Supply-side measures can help boost efficiency to some level, but how much they can boost growth rates is questionable.
For example, after the 1980s supply-side measures, the government looked for a supply-side miracle that would allow for a significantly quicker pace of economic growth. The Lawson boom of the 1980s, however, proved unsustainable, and the UK’s growth rate stayed relatively constant at roughly 2.5 percent. Supply-side initiatives, at the very least, will take a long time to implement; for example, improving labor productivity through education and training will take many years.
There is far more scope for the government to increase growth rates in developing economies with significant infrastructure failures and a lack of basic amenities.
The potential for higher growth rates is greatly increased by providing basic levels of education and infrastructure.
The private sector is responsible for the majority of productivity increases. With a few exceptions, private companies are responsible for the majority of technical advancements. The great majority of productivity gains in the UK is due to new technologies developed by the private sector. I doubt the government’s ability to invest in new technologies to enhance productivity growth at this rate. (Though it is possible especially in times of conflict)
Economic growth in the UK
The UK economy has risen at a rate of 2.5 percent each year on average since 1945. Most economists believe that the UK’s productive capacity can grow at a rate of roughly 2.5 percent per year on average. The underlying trend rate is also known as the ‘trend rate of growth.’
Even when the government pursued supply-side reforms, they were largely ineffective in changing the long-run trend rate. (For example, in the 1980s, supply-side policies had minimal effect on the long-run trend rate.)
The graph below demonstrates how, since 2008, actual GDP has fallen below the trend rate. Because of the recession and a considerable drop in aggregate demand, this happened.
- Improved private-sector technology that allows for increased labor productivity (e.g. development of computers enables greater productivity)
- Infrastructure investment, such as the construction of new roads and train lines. The government is mostly responsible for this.
What factors influence GDP growth?
Economic development and growth are impacted by four variables, according to economists: human resources, physical capital, natural resources, and technology. Governments in highly developed countries place a strong emphasis on these issues. Less-developed countries, especially those with abundant natural resources, will fall behind if they do not push technological development and increase their workers’ skills and education.
What are the four economic growth factors?
Factors of production are the materials and services that businesses require to create goods and services. They are able to benefit as a result of this. The concept of these components may be traced back to neoclassical economics, which combined historic economic theories with other concepts such as labor. Land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship are the four components of production, as stated previously. The factors of production are defined by the Federal Reserve Bank of St Louis as follows:
What makes an economy strong?
Question from a reader: Is a robust economy always accompanied by a strong currency?
In other words, a strong currency is a sign of a thriving economy. When the economy is performing well and the economy is in a boom phase, higher interest rates are needed to keep inflation low. Higher interest rates will attract hot money flows and increase currency demand. A healthy economy will boost people’s confidence in their currency. A robust economy may also indicate that the economy is growing more productive and competitive in the long run, resulting in increased demand for exports and hence the currency.
However, there is no assurance that a healthy economy will result in a rise in the currency’s value. In some conditions (poor export growth, rising inflation), a healthy economy could lead to a currency depreciation.
Exchange rates can also fluctuate due to market sentiment (for example, correcting an overvaluation) that has little to do with economic performance.
What is a strong economy?
- Economic growth at a rapid pace. This indicates an increase in economic output, which will result in increased average earnings, output, and expenditure.
- Inflation is low and consistent (though if growth is very high, we might start to see rising inflation)
Why does a strong economy cause a strong currency?
Germany and Japan both had outstanding postwar economic performances, characterized by high levels of investment and rapid productivity and competitiveness gains. German and Japanese exports are becoming more competitive in the global market as a result of these productivity advances. The demand for their exports increased. As a result, the German mark and the Japanese yen have steadily appreciated. High growth, low inflation, and a sustained currency appreciation characterized the economies.
Investors seeking to profit from economic stability will flock to countries with a solid track record of economic growth, political stability, and a stable currency. Investors prefer to save in dollars and euros since these currencies have historically held their value well due to robust and stable economic performance.
An economy with a track record of bad performance (low growth, fluctuating inflation rate), on the other hand, is considerably more likely to have a volatile currency. For example, a drop in the price of oil prompted investors to sell currencies such as the Russian Rouble and the Venezuelan Bolivar, causing these economies to weaken significantly.
In the short term, if an economy sees relatively high rates of economic growth, interest rates are likely to rise as the Central Bank responds by raising interest rates in response to stronger growth and potential inflationary pressures.
Higher interest rates result in ‘hot money flows,’ in which foreigners want to save in that country to benefit from higher returns. The exchange rate rises as a result of this.
Since emerging from recession in 2010, the US economy has outperformed several of its competitors, including the Eurozone, Japan, and the United Kingdom. The US economy has grown faster, and unemployment has dropped to 4%. As a result, the US has raised interest rates faster than Japan and the Eurozone, two of its biggest competitors. As a result, the value of the dollar has increased by almost 20% since 2009. This backs up the theory that a strong currency follows a time of robust growth.
This has been a moment of economic uncertainty, with the global economy still reeling from the effects of the financial crisis. The US dollar’s position as a worldwide reserve currency makes it a relatively safe choice when compared to the alternatives.
The sudden rise of the dollar in the middle of the 2008-2009 recession is an interesting point on the graph. Between mid-2008 and mid-2009, the dollar appreciated by almost 20% in just a few months. This was despite the fact that:
This demonstrates that the link between a robust economy and a strong currency can be broken in the near run. In 2008-09, a global crisis of trust drove investors to flee emerging nations in search of “relative safety” in the United States. As a result, the dollar appreciated despite a relatively weak economy in the short run. The dollar’s rise in this situation was primarily owing to the United States’ long-term reputation.
Weak dollar 2000-2008
The excellent economic performance of the 1990s resulted in a dollar appreciation, as one might expect.
However, the decade from 2002 to 2008 was likewise characterized by robust economic growth, although the dollar suffered a significant loss (about 25%). The relatively strong US performance in the 2000s appeared to have a negative link with a strong dollar.
A significant current account imbalance exists. The United States’ expansion in the 2000s was marked by a current account deficit (imports greater than exports). A current account deficit tends to put downward pressure on a currency since demand for imported goods is stronger than demand for domestic ones.
This demonstrates that it is contingent on the type of’strong economic development.’ When growth is driven by exports and fueled by increased productivity, the currency tends to do better. When growth is driven by consumers and reliant on imports the currency tends to weaken.
Another consideration is that currencies are exchanged on currency exchanges and are susceptible to market sentiment. A lengthy depreciation in the currency might sometimes be viewed as a simple’market correction’ to a past overvaluation. There isn’t always a direct correlation between a currency’s performance and the economy’s.
What causes a drop in GDP?
Shifts in demand, rising interest rates, government expenditure cuts, and other factors can cause a country’s real GDP to fall. It’s critical for you to understand how this figure changes over time as a business owner so you can alter your sales methods accordingly.
What is the formula for GDP?
Gross domestic product (GDP) equals private consumption + gross private investment + government investment + government spending + (exports Minus imports).
GDP is usually computed using international standards by the country’s official statistical agency. GDP is calculated in the United States by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, which is part of the Commerce Department. The System of National Accounts, compiled in 1993 by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Commission, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), is the international standard for estimating GDP.
What impact does GDP have on the economy?
- It indicates the total value of all commodities and services produced inside a country’s borders over a given time period.
- Economists can use GDP to evaluate if a country’s economy is expanding or contracting.
- GDP can be used by investors to make investment decisions; a weak economy means lower earnings and stock values.
What are the three economic systems?
Free market, command, and mixed economies are the three primary types of economies. In the graph below, free-market and command economies are compared; mixed economies are a hybrid of the two. Individuals and businesses make economic decisions on their own.