Does public debt impose a burden? Explain.
Government debt or public debt refers to the amount or money that a central government owes. This amount may be borrowings of the government from banks, public financial institutions and from other external and internal sources. Public debt definitely imposes a burden on the economy as a whole, which is described through the following points.
1. Adverse effect on productivity and investment: A government may impose taxes or get money printed to repay the debt. This however reduces the peoples ability to work, save and invest, thus hampering the development of a country.
2. Burden on younger generations: The government transfers the burden of reduced consumption on future generations. Higher government borrowings in the present leads to higher taxes levied in future in order to repay the past obligations. The government imposes taxes on the younger generations, lowering their consumption, savings and investments. Hence, higher public debt has negative effect on the welfare of the younger generations.
3. Lowers the private investment: The government attracts more investment by raising rates of interests on bonds and securities. As a result, a major part of savings of citizens goes in the hands of the government, thus crowding out private investments.
4. Leads to the drain of National wealth: The wealth of the country is drained out at the time of repaying loans taken from foreign countries and institutions.
Explain the relation between government deficit and government debt.
Give the relationship between the revenue deficit and the fiscal deficit.
Discuss the issue of deficit reduction.
Are fiscal deficits inflationary?
‘The fiscal deficit gives the borrowing requirement of the government’. Elucidate.
We suppose that C = 70 + 0.70Y D, I = 90, G = 100, T = 0.10Y (a) Find the equilibrium income. (b) What are tax revenues at equilibrium income? Does the government have a balanced budget?
In the above question, calculate the effect on output of a 10 per cent increase in transfers, and a 10 per cent increase in lump-sum taxes. Compare the effects of the two.
Explain why the tax multiplier is smaller in absolute value than the government expenditure multiplier.
Explain why public goods must be provided by the government.
Suppose marginal propensity to consume is 0.75 and there is a 20 per cent proportional income tax. Find the change in equilibrium income for the following (a) Government purchases increase by 20 (b) Transfers decrease by 20.
What is marginal propensity to consume? How is it related to marginal propensity to save?
Differentiate between balance of trade and current account balance.
What are the four factors of production and what are the remunerations to each of these called?
What is a barter system? What are its drawbacks?
What is the difference between microeconomics and macroeconomics?
What is the difference between ex ante investment and ex post investment?
What are official reserve transactions? Explain their importance in the balance of payments.
Why should the aggregate final expenditure of an economy be equal to the aggregate factor payments? Explain.
What are the main functions of money? How does money overcome the shortcomings of a barter system?
What are the important features of a capitalist economy?
In a single day Raju, the barber, collects Rs 500 from haircuts; over this day, his equipment depreciates in value by Rs 50. Of the remaining Rs 450, Raju pays sales tax worth Rs 30, takes home Rs 200 and retains Rs 220 for improvement and buying of new equipment. He further pays Rs 20 as income tax from his income. Based on this information, complete Raju’s contribution to the following measures of income (a) Gross Domestic Product (b) NNP at market price (c) NNP at factor cost (d) Personal income (e) Personal disposable income.
What is a barter system? What are its drawbacks?
Would the central bank need to intervene in a managed floating system? Explain why.
Write down some of the limitations of using GDP as an index of welfare of a country.
Measure the level of ex-ante aggregate demand when autonomous investment and consumption expenditure (A) is Rs 50 crores, and MPS is 0.2 and level of income (Y) is Rs 4000 crores. State whether the economy is in equilibrium or not (cite reasons).
Suppose C = 40 + 0.8Y D, T = 50, I = 60, G = 40, X = 90, M = 50 + 0.05Y
(a) Find equilibrium income. (b) Find the net export balance at equilibrium income (c) What happens to equilibrium income and the net export balance when the government purchases increase from 40 and 50?
Describe the Great Depression of 1929.
Explain ‘Paradox of Thrift’.
Why should the aggregate final expenditure of an economy be equal to the aggregate factor payments? Explain.
Suppose the exchange rate between the Rupee and the dollar was Rs. 30=1$ in the year 2010. Suppose the prices have doubled in India over 20 years while they have remained fixed in USA. What, according to the purchasing power parity theory will be the exchange rate between dollar and rupee in the year 2030.