The National & International Economy

Youds, C. (2021) ‘Exploring economic growth’, Economic Review, 38 (4), pp.8-11.
Growth in the economy matters for everyone – individuals, businesses, charities and the government. Catherine Youds examines types of economic growth. This article supports your study of macroeconomics; growth; GDP; income; consumption; output; and wellbeing.

Batista, L. (2021) ‘What is a circular economy?’, Economic Review, 38 (3), pp.2-6.
With a fast-growing population and a continuous increase in the demand for food, goods and energy, the Earth’s resources are being consumed more quickly than they can be renewed. Luciano Batista looks at how the circulatory principle might lead to more sustainable economies and societies. Look out for the practice questions in the article.

Smith, P. (2021) ‘Quantitative skills: index numbers’, Economic Review, 38 (3), pp.18-20.
Index numbers are an important part of the economist’s tool kit. Peter Smith explains what index numbers are and shows some of the ways in which this tool can be used.

Smith, P. (2021) ‘Covid-19, Keynes and the national debt’, Economic Review, 38 (4), pp.24-28.
During 2020, the global economy was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, and governments in many countries poured funds into countering the virus and trying to preserve their economies. Peter Smith explores the repercussions for the national debt. This article supports your learning of national debt; government borrowing; fiscal and monetary policy; and Covid-19. Look out for the practice questions in this article.

Blair, D. (2021) ‘Fiscal policy: Covid-19 and the gender wage gap’, Economic Review, 38 (4), pp.32-33.
The Covid-19 pandemic and associated recession are likely to have profound effects on the UK economy. One such impact concerns the implications for gender equality and the gender wage gap. Debbie Blair of the Institute for Fiscal Studies investigates. This article supports links to your unit on The Labour Market and supports your study of discrimination in the labour market. Look out for the practice questions in this article.

Karjalainen, H. (2021) ‘Fiscal policy: dealing with a pandemic: understanding the furlough scheme’, Economic Review, 38 (3), pp.32-33.
The furlough scheme was unprecedented in its scope and cost. So why did the government implement such a scheme? Heidi Karjalainen explores some of the economic theory that can explain the reasoning behind this approach.

Finnerty, S. (2020) ‘The regulation of financial services in the UK’, Economic Review, 37 (3), pp.2-5.
The regulation of the financial system in the UK involves several organisation and seeks to address a wide range of risks. Stuart Finnerty explores these risks and the role played by the different regulators.

Horner, D. (2020) ‘Question and answer: the balance of payments’, Economic Review, 38 (1), pp.12-15.
The current account of the balance of payments is often perceived as one of the key indicators of an economy’s performance. In this column, David Horner offers guidance on tackling examination questions that deal with this topic.

Paul, H. (2020) ‘Financial crashes: are they all the same?’ Economic Review, 27 (3), pp.11-13.
Helen Paul takes a historical perspective, in particular looking at the year 1720, to examine the economics of crashes and find out what we can learn from the past.

Guest, J. (2020) ‘Applied economics: the European Union’s Emissions Trading System: how does it work?’, Economic Review, 38 (2), pp.34.
The most important policy in the EU for reducing the emission of greenhouse gases is the Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). The EU ETS is an example of a cap-and-trade policy. How does it work?

Youds, C. (2020) ‘Understanding employment: causes, measures and policy responses’, Economic Review, 38 (1), pp.25-29.
Employment is a top priority for the UK government and an important contributor to achieving a stable and successful economy. Catherine Youds examines the causes of unemployment and the policy choices available to governments to achieve their macroeconomic objectives.

Delestre, I. (2020) ‘Fiscal policy: income inequality and the rise of the 1%’, Economic Review, 38 (2), pp.32-33.
How has such a small group of people managed to earn such riches? This is among the most contentious questions of modern economics. Here, Isaac Delestre of the Institute for Fiscal Studies looks for answers.

Horner, D. (2019) ‘Question and answer: inflation and deflation: which is worse?’, Economic Review, 37 (1), pp.26-29.
This article offer guidance on answering exam questions concerning the relative significance of inflation and deflation for the macroeconomy.

Smith, P. (2019) ‘Quantitative skills: how is inflation calculated and why does it matter?’, Economic Review, pp.9-11.
A key objective of government macroeconomic policy is to achieve stable inflation. But how do we measure and interpret this economic indicator? This article explores some of the issues involved.

Powell, J. (2019) ‘Question and answer: trade and the balance of payments’, Economic Review, 36 (4), pp.18-21.
Whichever exam specification you are studying, the topic of trade and the balance of payments is important. In this column, James Powell highlights the importance of practising reading and answering the questions on the topic under exam conditions

Youds, C. (2019) ‘What is corruption?’, Economic Review, 36 (4), pp.10-13.
Corruption is a huge obstacle to sustainable economic, political and social development for all economies. Catherine Youds investigates how it occurs and what governments can do to curb it.

Lait, A. (2019) ‘Universal basic income: inevitability or unrealistic ideal?’, Economic Review, pp.22-25.
The idea of offering citizens a universal basic income has gained visibility in recent years. In this article, Ashley Lait discusses some advantages and drawbacks of introducing a universal basic income.

Turner, P. (2018) ‘UK economic performance’, Economic Review, 35 (4), pp.16-17.
Elsewhere in this issue, Paul Turner outlines the key aspects of the UK economy in 2017. The figures on this centrespread provide a longer-run context for this.

Rapley, P. (2017) ‘Animal spirits: can human nature explain economic performance?’, Economic Review, 35 (1), pp.2-4.
The financial crisis and its aftermath have raised questions about the effectiveness of monetary policy and financial regulation. To what extent does this reflect human nature? This article examines the part that ‘animal spirits’ can play.

Turner, P. (2016) ‘Economics in the real world: index numbers and human development’, Economic Review, 34 (2), pp.22-25.
Measuring the level of welfare in a country is of great importance to economists and others, but how do we go about it? Paul Turner of Loughborough University explores some of the issues.