Overview of Course

What is the national debt? What is a trade deficit? Does traveling abroad contribute to the growth of trade deficits? Are these deficits bad for the economy? These and other questions related to the national economy will be addressed in this class. This will be done by defining and analyzing the interactions of key macroeconomic variables such as gross domestic product, national income, inflation, employment, exports, imports, monetary policy, fiscal policy and government deficits/surpluses. The discussion of monetary policy will include an explanation of the money supply and the basics of its management by the Federal Reserve Bank. This class will also include a brief discussion of the balance of payments and the growing importance that exports and imports have for the economies of most countries.