Macroeconomics Updated 2026

Macroeconomics Study Guide Updated 2026 | Real Exam Solutions Macroeconomics - answer - The study of the economy as a whole. gross domestic product (GDP) - answer - the dollar value of all final goods and services produced within the country's borders in a given year consumer price index (CPI) - answer - a measure of the overall cost of the goods and services bought by a typical consumer Inflation - answer - rise in the general level of prices. Deflation - answer - Sustained fall in the general price level. Stagflation - answer - High unemployment and high inflation at the same time National Debt - answer - the total amount of money owed by a nation's government to its creditors. national deficit - answer - the difference between the amount a government brings in through taxes and sends out through spending economic growth - answer - when a nation's total output of goods and services increases over time cyclical unemployment - answer - unemployment caused by a business cycle recession Structural Unemployment - answer - unemployment resulting from a poor match of workers' abilities and skills with current requirements of employers Frictional Unemployment - answer - people who are temporarily between jobs (including those new to the work force) seasonal unemployment - answer - when people lose their jobs predictably every year at the same time Fiscal policy - answer - Use of government spending and revenue collection measures to influence the economy. monetary policy - answer - policies that control the supply of money, the price of money and the availability of credit. aggregate demand - answer - the total demand for goods and services in the economy Aggregate supply - answer - The total quantity of output producers are willing and able to supply at alternative price levels in a given time period. business cycle - answer - * the ups and downs (phases) through time of the level of overall economic activity (real GDP) Expansion - answer - A period in which real GDP, income, and employment rise recession - answer - an extended decline in business activity Depression - answer - a sharp reduction in an economy's total output accompanied by high unemployment lasting more than a year. The Federal Reserve - answer - The central monetary authority of the US The Federal Open Market Operations Committee - answer - decides how monetary policy should be carried out by the federal reserve reserve requirement - answer - a percentage of commercial banks' checking and savings accounts that must be physically kept in the bank open market operations - answer - the purchase or sale of US government securities (Bonds) by the Fed tight money policy - answer - monetary policy that makes credit expensive and in short supply in an effort to slow the economy Loose money policy - answer - monetary policy that makes credit inexpensive an abundant, possibly leading to inflation Contraction - answer - Period of economic decline