abu yahya's definitions
*noun*, term used in economics to refer to the New Classical economics. The fresh water school was lead by Robert E. Lucas, Thomas J. Sargent, and Robert Barro; its position was that fiscal policy and monetary policy are doomed to be ineffective, since they rely on "fooling the public."
Instead, they argued that even tax cuts had no stimulus effect (in contrast to "supply side economics"), and of course they were resolutely opposed to government spending. Instead, the fresh water school maintained that a recession was caused by markets adjusting to a technology shock to create a structurally different economic system. The best thing to do was to allow the markets to restructure industry on their own.
The fresh water school was known for their support of the "rational expectations hypothesis" (REH) and "real business cycle" (RBC) theory.
Instead, they argued that even tax cuts had no stimulus effect (in contrast to "supply side economics"), and of course they were resolutely opposed to government spending. Instead, the fresh water school maintained that a recession was caused by markets adjusting to a technology shock to create a structurally different economic system. The best thing to do was to allow the markets to restructure industry on their own.
The fresh water school was known for their support of the "rational expectations hypothesis" (REH) and "real business cycle" (RBC) theory.
But lately, a ...school of skeptics who think the Government usually just gums things up is gaining attention and influence. The skeptics are known as the "fresh water school," less for the purity of their thought than for their origins at universities along the shores of the Great Lakes.
"'Fresh Water' Economists Gain," *New York Times*, 23 July 1988
"'Fresh Water' Economists Gain," *New York Times*, 23 July 1988
by Abu Yahya March 5, 2009
Get the fresh water school mug.(ECONOMICS) crisis created when a government or firm cannot pay its obligations in any reasonable time frame. Often confused with illiquidity, which is a when an entity suffers a temporary shortage of cash.
When a firm has assets that are greater than liabilities, it is solvent. In a lot of cases, the management of a firm runs out of ways to make money with the assets it has, so it "invests" in poor quality assets with high risk of default (for example, by lending money to borrowers using inflated housing prices as collateral).
When a firm has assets that are greater than liabilities, it is solvent. In a lot of cases, the management of a firm runs out of ways to make money with the assets it has, so it "invests" in poor quality assets with high risk of default (for example, by lending money to borrowers using inflated housing prices as collateral).
Most of the time, insolvency is the result of corrupt or feckless management. In a few cases, however, it can be the result of a vicious cycle in which a well-managed company's customers all become insolvent first.
by Abu Yahya May 5, 2010
Get the insolvency mug.(FINANCE) originally, a bond rated as not investment grade by a credit rating agency (e.g., Standard & Poor, Ernst & Young, or Moody's).
Later, a bond was a financial instrument deliberately created to have absurdly high levels of risk (of default), which was then priced in and "hedged" by a fund manager. Junk bonds are routinely used to finance leveraged buyouts.
Later, a bond was a financial instrument deliberately created to have absurdly high levels of risk (of default), which was then priced in and "hedged" by a fund manager. Junk bonds are routinely used to finance leveraged buyouts.
Michael Milken was the junk bond innovator who figured out how to make them an effective investment vehicle. Yes, he later went to jail for securities law violations.
by Abu Yahya September 1, 2010
Get the junk bond mug.In economics, a monetary policy in which the value of the local currency is determined by the foreign exchange markets, with some intervention by the government (or its allies) in the event of excessive or dangerous movements.
Usually the term is applied when the country ignores long term shifts in value, but intervenes directly to avoid crises.
Usually the term is applied when the country ignores long term shifts in value, but intervenes directly to avoid crises.
Most of the nations in the world have neither a hard peg nor floating currency, but something in between--a dirty float, in which trade is under some restrictions.
by abu yahya June 24, 2008
Get the dirty float mug.(FINANCE) when a private equity fund sells a company it has taken private to another fund. Usually financed with junk bonds.
The secondary buyout became a hot trend in the period 2005-2008, partly because other segments of the equities markets were doing so poorly. The hedge funds were willing to buy the junk bonds because they believed they had mastered the risk control; but the deals themselves were absurd.
The whole purpose of a leveraged buyout is to restructure the target company so profits from its resale can be used to pay for the deal. But if a capital management firm has already issued the junk bonds to finance a restructuring, there's little hope of another takeover artist squeezing any more profit out of restructuring. The whole point is to scam the markets.
The secondary buyout became a hot trend in the period 2005-2008, partly because other segments of the equities markets were doing so poorly. The hedge funds were willing to buy the junk bonds because they believed they had mastered the risk control; but the deals themselves were absurd.
The whole purpose of a leveraged buyout is to restructure the target company so profits from its resale can be used to pay for the deal. But if a capital management firm has already issued the junk bonds to finance a restructuring, there's little hope of another takeover artist squeezing any more profit out of restructuring. The whole point is to scam the markets.
The sudden popularity of the secondary buyout never made any sense, except as a scam. As a vehicle for peddling exotic financial derivatives, it was mildly interesting, but there was no common sense to the idea of two consecutive takeover artists doing LBO's of the same company. One of them had to be incompetent for there to be any reason for it.
by Abu Yahya September 1, 2010
Get the secondary buyout mug.title of book by John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946) outlining the general concept of Keynesian economics. The book was published in 1936.
*Context*
______________________________
Prior to the Great Depression, opinions about how to properly manage the economy were dominated by Neoclassical economics, which advocated little government intervention. In particular, unemployment was regarded as the consequence of workers failing to accept wages sufficiently low to permit full employment.
During the Great Depression, unemployment soared to 25% in the USA and Germany. Economics had no advice to give to leaders anxious to do something, and none of the neoclassical predictions were coming true. The government of the UK commissioned J.M. Keynes to lead a commission of top British economists in a general review of economic theory; their finding were summarized by Keynes in *The General Theory*.
*The Findings*
______________________________
The Cambridge team did not have access to statistics of national income and product accounting (NIPA). They did have some data on unemployment and prices, especially from the USA.
Keynes also identified several inherent logical problems with neoclassical economic theory about saving and investment. The theory said that all economic output of an economy would tend to be consumed; all saving would be invested; and all workers would be employed, *provided wages fell low enough*.
Keynes noted the economic mechanism by which investment occurs has little to do with the existing rate of saving; both are influenced by interest rates, but other forces come into play (e.g., liquidity preference for saving, business opportunities and user cost for investment). Hence, aggregate demand can drift very far out of alignment with output (or potential output).
Another finding was that employment rates actually did not respond in a predictable way to the fall in wages. The US economy suffered periods when a reduction in the wage level lead to increases in employment, despite the assumption that workers would have withdrawn from the labor market.
Finally, Keynes proposed the use of monetary policy and fiscal policy for regulating business cycles.
*Context*
______________________________
Prior to the Great Depression, opinions about how to properly manage the economy were dominated by Neoclassical economics, which advocated little government intervention. In particular, unemployment was regarded as the consequence of workers failing to accept wages sufficiently low to permit full employment.
During the Great Depression, unemployment soared to 25% in the USA and Germany. Economics had no advice to give to leaders anxious to do something, and none of the neoclassical predictions were coming true. The government of the UK commissioned J.M. Keynes to lead a commission of top British economists in a general review of economic theory; their finding were summarized by Keynes in *The General Theory*.
*The Findings*
______________________________
The Cambridge team did not have access to statistics of national income and product accounting (NIPA). They did have some data on unemployment and prices, especially from the USA.
Keynes also identified several inherent logical problems with neoclassical economic theory about saving and investment. The theory said that all economic output of an economy would tend to be consumed; all saving would be invested; and all workers would be employed, *provided wages fell low enough*.
Keynes noted the economic mechanism by which investment occurs has little to do with the existing rate of saving; both are influenced by interest rates, but other forces come into play (e.g., liquidity preference for saving, business opportunities and user cost for investment). Hence, aggregate demand can drift very far out of alignment with output (or potential output).
Another finding was that employment rates actually did not respond in a predictable way to the fall in wages. The US economy suffered periods when a reduction in the wage level lead to increases in employment, despite the assumption that workers would have withdrawn from the labor market.
Finally, Keynes proposed the use of monetary policy and fiscal policy for regulating business cycles.
The *The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money* completely shook up the world of economic policy. Hereafter, governments took responsibility for economic conditions or they lost power.
by Abu Yahya March 3, 2009
Get the The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money mug.Of or related to the United States of America; term coined by Frank Lloyd Wright to refer to his new ideal for architecture. This word is preferable to "American" since there are dozens of countries in North and South America. In some Latin American countries, such as Brazil, the use of "American" to refer to US nationals is considered offensive and officially discouraged.
While Canadians and Usonians share a common heritage and close proximity, there are some subtle cultural differences.
by Abu Yahya October 16, 2008
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