Economic Growth and Business Cycles
The best measure of an economy is its growth rate. An economy growing 2% annually will quadruple in about 70 years, which is a little less than life expectancy, while an economy growing at 3% annually will almost octuple during that same lifetime, ending up twice the size of the 2% economy due solely to a 1% difference in annual growth rate.
In the last 50 years, the United States economy has grown about 2.8%; 1.1% of that growth came from population growth and the remaining 1.7% came from productivity improvements, especially technology improvements.
Economic growth is either an increase in real GDP or an increase in real GDP per capita occurring over a specific time period. High GDP indicates high output by the economy, but a high GDP per capita indicates a high standard of living. For instance, China's GDP greatly exceeds Denmark's, but Denmark's GDP per capita is much higher; hence, Denmark enjoys a higher standard of living than most Chinese.
There are 2 main sources of growth: increases in the factors of production, and increases in the productivity of converting those factors of production into finished products and services.
Adam Smith cited 4 principal causes of economic growth in his book The Wealth of Nations as being increases in the:
- labor force,
- degree of labor specialization,
- amount of capital stock, and
- level of technology.
Labor and capital stock are inputs used to produce economic output, while the specialization of labor and technology makes more productive use of the inputs, thus expanding economic output even more. Increases in entrepreneurship also increases productivity as entrepreneurs discover more efficient ways to provide products and services, or even to produce new products and services. Generally, the rate of economic growth is commensurate with the rate of growth of these factors of production. Although land is a major factor of production, it cannot be increased, so it is not a source of growth. Although the population of the world is still increasing, leisure is also increasing, so the growth of the labor force is starting to flatten.
The main sources of growth today occur from the advancement of technology, especially in computers, automation, and networking. With better technology, the quantity of production can be increased while also lowering costs. Thus, technology expands the production possibility frontier. For instance, electronic publications, such as documents posted online, e-books, and other sources of electronic information, have reduced the need for paper, the need to deliver the publications to various destinations, and the need to store such publications in warehouses. Moreover, electronic publications can be produced much faster and the information is much more usable, since it can be easily searched and viewed on portable devices.
The rate of economic growth also depends on the size of the economy. Smaller economies grow faster than larger economies because they are growing from a smaller base. Just as for businesses, the larger the economy, the lower the growth rate tends to be. Moreover, smaller economies are usually less well developed, so they benefit from assistance from more developed nations. Less-developed nations often copy the newest technologies, buy it outright, or their domestic companies partner with companies of developed economies with leading-edge technology. China, for instance, is leveraging many partnerships with leading-edge companies from around the world so that it can acquire the latest technologies and learn the newest methods of doing business.
Increases in productivity also allow an economy to invest more in research and development and take more risks in new enterprises. With economic growth, products and services increase in quality, and people generally enjoy greater amounts of leisure.
Real economic growth is measured by subtracting the real GDP of the previous year from the real GDP of the measured year, then dividing that difference by the real GDP of the previous year.
( Real GDP for Year − Real GDP for Previous Year ) | ||
Real Economic Growth | = | |
Real GDP for Previous Year |
Business Cycles
Economic growth does not increase continually, but rather in spurts, by cycling through peaks and recessions. Often, peaks are associated with higher prosperity, but also with higher inflation, while recessions are associated with higher unemployment. However, business cycles are not uniform — some are short, lasting for several months, while some last for several years. After the economy peaks, then there is a downturn, lessening inflation, raising unemployment, and lowering economic productivity. Economic output reaches a maximum at the peak of the business cycle, while it reaches a minimum at the trough. The trend of economic growth, however, is generally upward.
Causes of Business Cycles
Many hypotheses try to explain the business cycle. Some say that major innovations are the cause of business cycles, such as the development of the railroad, motor vehicle, and computer technology. Indeed, when fundamental innovations are made, many business people discover how to capitalize on the new technology. For instance, Internet technology coupled with programming languages, especially open source programming languages, allows innovators to develop a wide variety of services based on these fundamental technologies.
Others argue that a varying money supply causes business cycles. Indeed, an increase in the money supply will stimulate the economy, at least at first, but eventually it ends because people start anticipating inflation that results when the money supply is continually increasing. However, the contraction of the money supply will contract the economy, because businesses cannot profit without being able to sell their wares. When money supply declines, deflation sets in, motivating people to save their money since it becomes more valuable in time.
However, the main cause of business cycles is a fluctuation in consumer spending. As the economy recovers from recession, people's confidence increases, so their spending increases, which gives rise to a multiplier effect, raising the income of both individuals and businesses, which in turn, stimulates more spending. However, at some point, the business cycle peaks because people have no more money to spend, and indeed, many people have borrowed money, so their debt load forces them to stop spending at some point, since they must repay their debt, resulting is less consumer spending.
How Capital Goods and Consumer Durables Are Affected by the Business Cycle
When the economy declines, the first companies to suffer are those producing capital goods and durable consumer items, such as automobiles, computers, and appliances. Businesses need not increase their purchases of capital stock in a declining economy, because the equipment they have can produce enough output to satisfy declining needs. Likewise, consumers lose confidence in the economy, so they cut back on major purchases, such as cars and trucks, computers, and appliances, since most people replace these items when they want a newer or better version. However, in an uncertain economy, people will hold onto what they have for longer periods of time. Through the multiplier effect, the economy slows even more until it reaches a trough. However, most services and nondurable consumer goods are relatively unaffected by recession, because it is difficult for consumers to put off such purchases, such as for food, clothing, and medical services. Indeed, some firms actually receive increased business during a recession, such as auto repair shops and law firms specializing in bankruptcy, since the need for these services usually increases as a result of the recession.
At some point however, the economy bottoms because people can only put off purchases for so long. Indeed, because they have put off purchases, there is actually an acceleration of purchases as the economy recovers. For instance, people can keep their cars and trucks for a few more years, but at some point, repairs will get more expensive than buying a new vehicle. Likewise, many people who were contemplating elective medical procedures can delay the procedures until a later time, but at some point, they usually must get it done. Another factor that helps the economy to recover is that people pay down their debt, since they have reduced their spending, so they have more money when they start buying again.