Explain how a shift from a government budget deficit to a budget surplus might affect the exchange rate.

Short Answer

Expert verified

The trade deficit will reduce as the government relies less on foreign investment, and the exchange rate will devalue.

Step by step solution

01

Definition

The budget of the government can tell us if the government is following an expansionary or contractionary fiscal strategy. This is because the budget reveals whether the government intends to increase spending on the economy or reduce it through taxation.

02

Explanation

As the government relies less on foreign investment, the trade imbalance will shrink, and the currency rate will depreciate. The investment will rise if government policy switches from a budget deficit to a budget surplus while the trade deficit remains stable. In times of economic boom, higher tax income, lower unemployment rates, and increased economic growth reduce the need for government-funded programs, hence budget deficits as a percentage of GDP may drop.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

Illustrate the concept of Ricardian equivalence using the demand and supply of financial capital graph.

During the most recent recession, some economists argued that the change in the interest rates that comes about due to deficit spending implied in the demand and supply of financial capital graph would not occur. A simple reason was that the government was stepping in to invest when private firms were not. Using a graph, explain how the use by the government in investment offsets the deficit demand.

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Under what conditions will a larger budget deficit cause a trade deficit?

Explain why the government might prefer to provide incentives to private firms to do investment or research and development, rather than simply doing the spending itself?

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