Inflation defines as an increase in the price you pay or a decline in the purchasing power of money. In other words, price inflation is when prices get higher or it takes more money to buy the same item. Interest rates are increased to moderate demand and inflation and they are reduced to stimulate demand.
Monetary policy aims to influence the overall level of monetary demand in the economy so that it grows broadly in line with the economy's ability to produce goods and services. This stops output rising too quickly or slowly. If rates are set too low, this may encourage the build-up of inflationary pressure; if they are set too high, demand will be lower than necessary to control inflation. Changes in demand and output then impact on the labor market - employment levels and wage costs - which in turn influence producer and consumer prices. When the Fed increases the discount rate, it does not have an immediate impact on the stock market. Changes in the official Bank rate then affect the whole range of interest rates set by commercial banks, building societies and other financial institutions for their own savers and borrowers. It will influence interest rates charged for overdrafts and mortgages, as well as savings accounts. A change in the official Bank rate will also tend to affect the price of financial assets such as bonds and shares, and the exchange rate. These changes in financial markets affect consumer and business demand and in turn output. Changes in the official Bank rate take time to have their full impact on the economy and inflation. Some influences, such as those on the exchange rate, work very quickly.
In January of 2003, Oil price spiked up 76.82% from the previous January. These have recently been some speculation on the correlation between a sharp rise in Oil price
and a sharp fall in Stock prices. The way the theory goes is that a sharp increase in oil prices on the magnitude of 50% to 100% annual increase has historically resulted in a sharp decline in the stock market price.
Monetary Policy is another policy used in Keynesianism which is a list of protocols designed to regulate the economy by setting the amount of money that is in circulation and controlled interest levels. The Federal Reserve system, also known as the central banking system in the U.S., which holds control of this policy. Monetary policy has three tools used by the Federal Reserve to enforce this policy. Reserve Requirement is the first tool that determines the lowest amount of money a bank must possess and is not able to lend out. The second way to enforce monetary policy is by using the discount rate or the interest rate a bank will charge.
The Federal Reserve and Macroeconomic Factors Introduction The Federal Reserve controls the economy of the United States through a variety of tools. They use these tools to shape the monetary policy of the United States in order to promote economic growth and reduce the rate of inflation and the unemployment rate. By adjusting these tools, the Fed is able to control the amount of money in the supply. By controlling the amount of money, the Fed can affect the macro-economic indicators and steer the economy away from runaway inflation or a recession.
In 2004, crude oil producers around the world expected a 1.5% growth in the world’s demand for crude oil. The actual growth rate was more than double the projections at 3.3%. This growth was due to rapidly industrializing of foreign countries such as, China and India. Therefore the lack of crude oil affected the supply of gasoline to consumers at the pump.
According to the website of Oil-Price, today’s value for a barrel can be bought at the price of $41.25 this means that oil is not demanded as much as it used to be over the years, because of the awareness of the environment and also because it is a cyclical phenomenon, there’s no actual reason, but the price will eventually rise again. Since oil is used to produce gas, it would come with surprise if the price of gas is low since the oil cost are also low. Gas prices depend on oil costs and oil costs depend on
To understand the increase in gas prices, one must first identify the distribution of dollars paid per gallon at the pump. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (eia) in 2010, the annual average paid at the pump consisted of 68% crude oil, 7% refining, 10% distribution and marketing, and 15% taxes (see Fig.1). This shows an increase of crude oil over the 2000-2009 average of 51%. (e. I. Administration)
In the study of macroeconomics there are several sub factors that affect the economy either favorably or adversely. One dynamic of macroeconomics is monetary policy. Monetary policy consists of deliberate changes in the money supply to influence interest rates and thus the level of spending in the economy. “The goal of a monetary policy is to achieve and maintain price level stability, full employment and economic growth.” (McConnell & Brue, 2004).
In 1970 oil reserves became more scarce, leading to a decrease in production, while consumption continued to grow rapidly (Wright, R. T., & Boorse, D. F. 2011). In order to fill the gap between rising demand and falling supply of oil, the United States became more and more dependent on imported oil, primarily from Arab countries in the Middle East. (Wright, R. T., & Boorse, D. F. 2011). As the U.S and many other countries became highly industrialized nations, they became even more dependent on oil imports. With demand being higher than the actual amount of supply, prices kept rising reaching a peak of $140 a barrel in 2008. (Wright, R. T., & Boorse, D. F. 2011).
Monetary policy is the mechanism of a country’s monetary authority (usually the central bank) taking up measures to regulate the supply of money and the rates of interest. It involves controlling money in the economy to promote economic growth and stability by creating relatively stable prices and low unemployment. A monetary policy mainly deals with the supply of money, availability of money, cost of money and the rate of interest to attain a set of objectives aiming towards growth and stability of the economy. Here are some of the monetary policy tools:
The first major aspect of the monetary policy by the Federal Reserve is its interest rate policy. This interest rate policy is mainly determined by the figure for the federal funds rate, which is the rate at which commercial banks with balances held within the Federal Reserve can borrow from each other overnight in ord...
Another key cause to the price inflation issue is the extended period of bitterly cold weather that loomed in the northern and midwestern parts of the U.S. throughout the winter months. This led to an “increased demand in home heating oil, which is widely used in the region and is virtually identical to diesel fuel” (Lang1). This increased demand for fuel coupled with the restrictions on exported oil allowed OPEC to jack up their prices an exorbitant amount in a relatively short period of time.
According to federalreserveeducation.org, the term "monetary policy" refers to what the Federal Reserve, the nation 's central bank, does to influence the amount of money and credit in the U.S. economy, (n d). The tools used are diverse but the main ones are:
Inflation is defined as an increase in the expected price level and has been the signal for an improving economy, but it has also weakened an economy due to the unemployment it usually produces which usually hurts the Middle class the most. A healthy rate of inflation means an expanding economy due to higher tax revenues for the government and higher wages for businesses that are booming due to the high demand of their products. But if inflation surpasses of what is expected than employer will have to reduce wages to meet these new prices. When the Federal Reserve creates inflation most argue that this is robbing people of the money that they have saved because they have to use it due to the rise in prices. Printing
In an economy, aggregate demand (AD) accounts for the total expenditure on goods and services. It has five constituents; Consumer expenditure (C), Investment expenditure (I), Government expenditure (G), Export expenditure (X) and import expenditure (M), This gives us: AD= C+I+G+X-M. Aggregate supply (AS) on the other hand is the total supply of goods and services in the economy. Increasing AD and decreasing AS both cause demand-pull and cost-push inflation respectively. Demand pull inflation occurs when aggregate demand (AD) continuously rises, detailed in Figure 1. The AD curve continuously shifts to the right, as demand continuously increases, from point a to b to c. This consequently causes an increase in the price level of goods and services. As prices rise, costs of production also increase, causing producers to reduce output (a decrease in aggregate supply (AS)), shifting the AS curve to the left and leading to yet another increase in prices, (t...
Inflation is the rate at which the purchasing power of currency is falling, consequently, the general level of prices for goods and services is rising. Central banks endeavor to point of confinement inflation, and maintain a strategic distance from collapse i.e. deflation, with a specific end goal to keep the economy running smoothly.
Inflation is one of the most important economic issues in the world. It can be defined as the price of goods and services rising over monthly or yearly. Inflation leads to a decline in the value of money, it means that we cannot buy something at a price that same as before. This situation will increase our cost of living.