سؤال قراءة ستيب محلول — فهم التفاصيل (تدريب 5232)

(1) Today, it is hard to turn on the radio, watch the news on television, use the Internet, or read the newspaper without hearing or seeing something about the economy. Consider for just a moment the following questions: • Are U.S. workers as productive as workers in other countries? • Is the gross domestic product for the United States increasing or decreasing? • What is the current balance of trade for the United States? • Why is the unemployment rate important? (2) The information needed to answer these questions, along with the answers to other similar questions, is easily obtainable from many sources. More important, the answers to these and other questions can be used to gauge the economic health of a nation. For individuals, the health of the nation’s economy often affects the amount of interest you pay for homes, automobiles, credit card purchases, and other credit transactions. Finally, the health of the economy can also affect your ability to get a job or the financing you need to continue your education. The Importance of Productivity in the Global Marketplace The Importance of Productivity in the Global Marketplace (3) One way to measure a nation’s economic performance is to assess its productivity. Productivity is the average level of output per worker per hour. An increase in productivity results in economic growth because a larger number of goods and services are produced by a given labor force. (4) In addition to productivity, a measure called gross domestic product can be used to measure the economic well-being of a nation. Gross domestic product (GDP) is the total dollar value of all goods and services produced by all people within the boundaries of a country during a one-year period. For example, the values of automobiles produced by employees in an American-owned General Motors plant and a Japanese-owned Toyota plant in the United States are both included in the GDP for the United States. The U.S. GDP was $14.3 trillion in 2009. (5) The GDP figure facilitates comparisons between the United States and other countries because it is the standard used in international guidelines for economic accounting. It is also possible to compare the GDP for one nation over several different time periods. This comparison allows observers to determine the extent to which a nation is experiencing economic growth. For example, government experts project that GDP will grow to $21.8 trillion by the year 2018. (6) To make accurate comparisons of the GDP for different years, we must adjust the dollar amounts for inflation. Inflation is a general rise in the level of prices. Deflation is a general decrease in the level of prices. By using inflation-adjusted figures, we are able to measure the real GDP for a nation. In effect, it is now possible to compare the products and services produced by a nation in constant dollars-dollars that will purchase the same amount of goods and services. (7) In addition to GDP and real GDP, other economic measures exist that can be used to evaluate a nation’s economy. Because of the recent economic crisis, one very important statistic that is in the news on a regular basis is the unemployment rate: The unemployment rate is the percentage of a nation’s labor force unemployed at any time. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, when workers are unemployed, they, their families, and the country as a whole lose. Workers and their families lose wages, and the country loses the goods or services that could have been produced. In addition, the purchasing power of the workers is lost, which can lead to unemployment for yet other workers. Despite both federal and state programs to reduce the unemployment rate for the United States, it was hovering around 10 percent at the time of publication. This is an especially important statistic – especially if you are unemployed. The consumer price index (CPI) is a monthly index that measures the changes in prices of a fixed basket of goods purchased by a typical consumer in an urban area. Goods listed in the CPI include food and beverages, transportation, housing, clothing, medical care, recreation, education, communication, and other goods and services. Economists often use the CPI to determine the effect of inflation on not only the nation’s economy but also individual consumers. Another monthly index is the producer price index (PPI). The PPI measures prices that producers receive for their finished goods. Because changes in the reflect price increases or decreases at the wholesale level, the PPI is an accurate predictor of both changes in the CPI and prices that consumers will pay for many everyday necessities. What goods and services do people pay interest on