A household saves $2000 in a certificate of deposit (CD) at 5 percent annual interest. If inflation is 8 percent during that year, what is the approximate real value of the savings at the end of the year?

Correct answer: $1944

Explanation

This quantitative question tests the ability to calculate the real value of savings by first applying the nominal interest rate and then adjusting for the rate of inflation, demonstrating the concept of purchasing power.

Other questions

Question 1

Which phase of the business cycle is characterized by a temporary maximum in business activity, with the economy at or near full employment and the price level likely to rise?

Question 2

What is the immediate cause of the large majority of cyclical changes in the levels of real output and employment, according to most economists?

Question 3

During a business cycle, which industries are most affected by the fluctuations in output and employment?

Question 4

Using the data provided in the text for the year 2007, where the labor force was 153.1 million and the number of unemployed individuals was 7.1 million, what was the unemployment rate?

Question 5

What type of unemployment includes workers who are searching for jobs or are waiting to take jobs in the near future?

Question 6

When is the economy considered to be 'fully employed'?

Question 7

According to Okun's law as described in the text, if the actual unemployment rate is 7 percent and the natural rate of unemployment is 4 percent, what is the size of the GDP gap?

Question 8

Which demographic group, according to Table 26.2, experienced the highest unemployment rate in both 2002 and 2007?

Question 9

What is the primary measure of inflation in the United States, compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics?

Question 10

What type of inflation arises from an excess of total spending beyond the economy's capacity to produce?

Question 11

According to the text, who is hurt by unanticipated inflation?

Question 12

If a person's nominal income increases by 8 percent and the price level increases by 5 percent in a particular year, what is the approximate change in their real income?

Question 13

What is the relationship between the real interest rate, the nominal interest rate, and the inflation premium?

Question 14

What is the economic impact of cost-push inflation on real output?

Question 15

According to the rule of 70, if the inflation rate is 10 percent per year, how long would it take for the price level to double?

Question 16

Workers who are not actively seeking employment are classified by the BLS as:

Question 17

The unemployment that occurs when workers' skills and experience become obsolete or unneeded due to changes in consumer demand and technology is known as:

Question 18

What is the primary economic cost of unemployment?

Question 19

What is the natural rate of unemployment (NRU)?

Question 20

According to the text, what is the term for a decline in the price level?

Question 21

What is the primary source of cost-push inflation?

Question 22

During which of the following recessions listed in Table 26.1 was the decline in real output the greatest?

Question 23

What is the key difference between frictional and structural unemployment?

Question 25

What is a key reason that cost-push inflation is considered automatically self-limiting?

Question 26

If a lender charges a nominal interest rate of 11 percent and the expected rate of inflation is 6 percent, what is the real interest rate?

Question 27

What is the term for a situation where the rate of inflation declines, but the price level is still rising?

Question 28

What is a GDP gap?

Question 29

Why do economists view some frictional unemployment as desirable?

Question 30

Which of the following is an example of a noneconomic cost of severe cyclical unemployment?

Question 31

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the price of a 'market basket' of some 300 consumer goods and services purchased by:

Question 32

What is the effect of unanticipated deflation on the real income of a person with a fixed nominal income?

Question 33

Why do some economists believe that mild inflation is a necessary by-product of strong spending and economic growth?

Question 34

During the 1981-82 recession, the duration was 16 months. What was the depth, or decline in real output?

Question 35

If a saver places $1000 in an account with a 6 percent annual interest rate, but the inflation rate is 13 percent, what is the approximate real value of the savings at the end of one year?

Question 36

What is the term for cost-of-living adjustments that are sometimes included in union contracts to automatically increase pay when the CPI rises?

Question 37

The BLS lists part-time workers who want to work full-time but cannot find suitable full-time work as:

Question 38

What is hyperinflation?

Question 39

According to the text, which group is unaffected or may even be helped by unanticipated inflation?

Question 40

What does a negative GDP gap signify?

Question 41

The Last Word section on the stock market suggests that typical day-to-day and year-to-year changes in stock market values have what kind of impact on the macroeconomy?

Question 42

What is the main reason for the decline in the natural rate of unemployment (NRU) in the United States since the 1980s?

Question 43

In the context of inflation, what is an 'inflation premium'?

Question 44

Which of the following would be an example of a worker who is structurally unemployed?

Question 45

What is the primary reason the average workweek in the United States has declined since the early 1900s while real output has increased?

Question 46

What is the relationship between the unemployment rate and the GDP gap according to the text?

Question 47

The 2001 recession in the United States led to a decline in real GDP but not a decline in the price level. This phenomenon is known as:

Question 48

According to the text, a major reason for the high unemployment rates in several European economies compared to the U.S. is:

Question 49

The 'rule of 70' is a mathematical approximation used to determine:

Question 50

What is the primary effect of hyperinflation on the function of money?