Economics Commentary: Macroeconomics Essay

Areas of Syllabus your commentary relates to: Section 4: Macroeconomics Having experienced contraction from Q4 08 to Q2 09, the Canadian economy grew 5% in the fourth quarter of 2009, beating predicted forecasts. This growth was precipitated by consumer and government spending, as well as a growing housing market. There was also growth recorded in exports, with sectors such as the automotive, energy and industrial factoring into this. However, economists warn that for this growth to continue, issues such as unemployment and spotty aggregate demand must be addressed. Fiscal measures, meaning decisions made by the central governing body concerning taxation and government spending, have already been taken by the Canadian government, in the form of the fiscal stimulus package. This package has in it $12B in infrastructure spending, $7.8B meant to stimulate construction firms, $8.3 B for skills training and retraining, and several tax credits ranging from the home improvement ($1350/family) to lowered EI and income tax rates. Fiscal policy generally concerns itself with creating conditions of full employment, price stability and real GDP growth. Full employment, or an economic state where all eligible people who want to work can find employment at the prevailing wage rate, is important in achieving a state of maximum productivity in the economy. The current unemployment rate is 8.2%, above the generally accepted natural rate of unemployment. It has however fallen significantly, with a gain of 159,000 new jobs since June 2009. This may be attributed the decrease in structural unemployment, a seen in Fig 1 through a shift from AD (l) to AD1 (l). There mismatch in skills offered by Canadian workers and those demanded by firms has decreased on the diagram, perhaps through training programs. On the other hand, an increase in aggregate demand, caused by an increase in the disposable income of families may have also caused the increase in demand for labour as firms expanded or rehired laid off personnel. Price stability is also important for long term economic growth, because rampant inflation, meaning a steady and prolonged increase in the price level, is known to have several adverse effects. These include the extra costs caused by unsteady resource costs, and money losing its role as a medium of value. As the government injects more stimuli into the economy, the risk of demand pull inflation grows. Thus aggregate demand would rise; because of growth in the money supply, the price level would increase, as described by the short run equation of exchange, M=P. This increase in the money supply is provided by the Bank of Canada, and included as the Extraordinary Financing Framework in the government’s action plan. To avoid the aforementioned inflation, the Bank of Canada has several tools at its disposal. Raising the amount of reserve requirement is an interesting contractionary choice, so is raising the discount rate charged to major banks. These two together act to reduce the greatest inflationary obstacle, that is public opinion. Thus, as shown in Fig2, an increase in the interest rate results in a decrease in consumer demand for money. This decrease in demand would be useful in controlling inflation once recovery had occurred. However, in the present, the Bank of Canada is likely to concern itself with slowly increasing the money supply, and keeping a stable overnight rate. It is unknown whether the stimulus package is the cause of the rebound in the Canadian economy, this may have been caused by market forces. Additionally, the retraining programs are unlikely to have already decreased structural unemployment, as one of their major faults is the length of time needed to complete such a course. These so called time lags are problematic because once the retrained populace makes their way back into the labour market, 3-4 years may have passed, almost a full cycle of certain economies. As stated in the article, the Canadian recovery itself does not stand on stable ground, especially so given that a significant part of the EU is heavily in debt and America no yet out of its own recession, important, as 80% of Canadian imports are destined there. Whether or not the measures taken by the government with respect to stimulating the Canadian economy in the long run shall be successful remains to be seen. However, the average middle class citizen most likely has experienced the benefits of measures ranging from tax credits and reductions to funding directed to the industry they work in.

Business Analysis of Easy Jet Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Business Analysis of Easy Jet - Research Paper Example Having suppliers dotted all over areas, our report finally uses the Balance Scorecard to make some recommendations for the company to successfully adjust Porters value chain to suit its needs. Though Easy jet has successfully and effectively integrated customers and suppliers into the value chain, certain issues remain a nightmare for the company to crack. The lack of a unique service with total differentiation from the competitors, the rising tension on world politics, the war against peace (terror), global warming and its negative contribution are some particular examples. However, with our client's concept of marketing high-quality services at low cost through a focused generic strategy, intended for its flight route, the company is gradually gaining an edge over its competitors. Easy Jet airline Ltd popularly known as Easy Jet is based in London, Luton airport (Company Report 2005). It is known as the largest airline in the United Kingdom operating both domestic and international scheduled services. Though it specializes in point to point services it sometimes goes on full-service charter flights for other companies. This report is based on a business analysis report presented to the management of Easy Jet Company. ... Though it specializes in point to point services it sometimes goes on full-service charter flights for other companies. This report is based on a business analysis report presented to the management of Easy Jet Company. Part one of the report carries out an external analysis of the company while stating the vision and mission statement. Part two looks at the internal resources to identify the core competencies and strategic resources while part three provides pertinent recommendations and conclusions. 1.1.1 The Mission, Vision, and Objectives of Easy Jet The company's mission vision and objective statement centers on offering customers higher value to their money, through security, safe and good point to point services. According to the compa ny (2008) report, its mission and vision statement is to "provide our customers with safe, good value point to point air services. To effect and to offer a consistent and reliable product and fares appealing to leisure and business markets on a range of European routes. To achieve this, we will develop our people and establish a lasting relationship with our suppliers". Mission and vision statements are two strategic management concepts (SMCs) (Soyer & Asan 2007). These are important concepts that define organizations' values, competencies and are quite useful in the strategic planning and management of the organization (Soyer & Asan 2007). Soyer & Asan (2007:1) echo that, "SMCs together provide a common language and help stakeholders and other interested parties understand the business and its position in a competitive environment.

Cash Reconciliation Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Cash Reconciliation - Assignment Example This error will result to the bank statement having highest figure as compared to the cash account by $ 150. This error is reconciled by adding the $ 150 to cash account. The third error the bookkeeper recorded a payment of $ 250 as $ 25 from customer, but the bank noticed the error and deposited the right amount. With this error the bank statement will reflect a high balance than what the cash account reflects. This error can be reconciled by the bookkeeper adding $ 225 which is the difference of she received and what she recorded. The fourth error was committed by the bank when they were clearing a check of $ 255 but instead cleared $ 225. This error will result to the bank statement reflecting a higher balance as compared to what is being reflected on the company’s books of account. This can be reconciled by the bookkeeper adding the difference of $ 25 to the cash account. The fifth error the bookkeeper wrote a check of $ 369 but recorded $ 396. This will have an impact on the cash account since it will reflect a lower balance to that reflected by the bank statement. This error can be reconciled by adding the difference of $ 27 to the cash

Us formative history Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Us formative history - Essay Example They are document 1, document 2, document 3, and essay on the New World of Indians. Document 1 is a myth by Iroquois explaining the world’s beginning. The myth illustrates that the world never existed in the beginning, not even the land, the creatures, or the men. However, there was only the ocean that occupied entire space and the great air void above ocean surface. Document 2 illustrates the 1448 historic events of the battles between the Portuguese and the West Africans. The Portuguese directed their voyage to Cape Verder where two Guineas were captured in the past. On reaching the shore the Portuguese found a village with houses and men willing to defend it. Alvaro Fernandez killed the leader of the village, and the Guineas stopped fighting on realizing that their leader is dead (Jones 107). Document 3 explains the 1493 encounter of Christopher Columbus with the Native People. Christopher Columbus passed by Indies, using the fleet given by the King and the Queen, and saw several islands with many inhabitants. The inhabitants walk around naked; save for some women who cover their private parts with a plant leaf or some specially made cotton material (Morison 55). The essay explains the New World of the Indians. Even though the encounter of the Americas by the Europeans led to major effects in the Indian society; the indigenous people had inhabited the Americas for approximately millennia. The New World was experienced when the Indians encountered the Africans and the European, in the Virginia and also the California. The contact brought vast changes to the Indians society (Johnson 24). Document 1 describes the world origin myth. The sea had fish and deep sea creatures. The birds lived in the air, and the sky world had a man and his pregnant wife. The wife fell through a hole in the sky and landed on the back of the huge sea turtle. The woman gave birth to a daughter, who on reaching maturity bore quarrelsome twins. Right handed twin

Strategic leadership in hospital nonprofit organizations. explain Term Paper

Strategic leadership in hospital nonprofit organizations. explain problems with leadership, mission, budgetting and financial ma - Term Paper Example These include governance, volunteer programs, fundraising and granting, non-profit budgeting and accounting and public policy skills. Problems with leadership, mission, budgeting and financial management in hospital non-profit organizations Budgeting and financial management According to Goodman and Pennings (1997), non-profit organisations require highly customised forms of budgeting. The problem is that these budgeting skills are not taught in general management learning institutions. Non-profit hospitals have to fix their long list of needs within the limited pool of resources available in an attempt to achieve its objectives and meet the needs of the society. This is because the finances received by non-profit hospitals in most cases are low below what they need for effective service delivery. This attempt to satisfy everything for the sake of everyone usually results to ineffectiveness in non-profit hospitals (Bernd et al, 2004). Non-profit hospitals can operate as donor-faced, community-faced or agency-faced. Those that are donor-faced or agency-faced have to be very ken not to annoy their financiers so as to ensure their continuity. This means that the hospital organisation have a hard time in ensuring that no-patients overstay in the hospital so as to keep their financial expenses within the expected limits. Any such occurrences usually brings a lot of losses to the hospital unlike a profit making hospital in which patients pay for their medical and general expenses (Bernd et al, 2004). A budget should reflect the expected expenditure verses expected income as well as act as an executive control tool. However, in non-profit organisations, budgets are usually drawn just for formality purposes. Non-profit hospitals use non-scientific finance budgeting methods. These methods lack scientific calculation and analysis. Such methods do not take into account changes expected in the hospital environment. As a result of this, such budgets are not in a position to exert the required financial control in the hospital (Forbes, 1998). Non-profit hospitals are usually exempted from taxes. This has a disadvantage in that they are not allowed to access equity markets. This becomes a big challenge when the hospital needs capital to fund its projects because it blocks their ability to get capital from multiple channels. This means that the management has to greatly reduce expenses in other areas so as to get capital to fund the new project. Consequently, this impacts on the quality of services offered. Narrowed financial channels usually present a rick of financial crisis in non-profit hospitals. Alternatively, the hospital can opt to wait for donor funding for the project yet such funds could not be forthcoming in the near time (Bernd et al, 2004). Non-profit hospitals lack organisation and highly skilled personnel for its financial management. These cause them to lack the concepts and experiences of advanced enterprise financial control. At the sa me time, some non-profit hospitals lack clearly defined financial objectives in their management. These hospitals have to ensure that their mission to offer social benefits does not overtake the reality that a hospital is a market economy. Non-profit hospitals usually encounter a problem of investment in the course of their financial management. Many at times, there is blindness in investing the capital acquired. For example,

Critical Assessment and comparison of the Competitive and Essay

Critical Assessment and comparison of the Competitive and Profitabbility of UK food retail Sector and the UK Oil and Gas Sector - Essay Example Even due to the economic downturn, it is still predicted to increase by 15% over the next five years in the future (SAS, 2011). It is still considered to be an impressive figure despite the fact that it represents a slow growth. Over 9% of GDP of UK is generated by the retail industry which is the success factor of retail companies overseas. With the increase of e-commerce, the products are able to reach through millions of consumers. Hypermarkets have become competitive in offering diversified products to their wide customer base. The major players in the market, Tesco, Asda, J Sainsbury and Wm Morrison accounts for 80% of the total market share (Lloyds Bank, 2012). London is considered to be a strong market for consumer shopping and many people including tourists are inclined towards purchasing in London. It beats out other developed cities including New York, Tokyo and Paris with total spending of ?64.2 Billion (GAIN, 2010). The recessionary periods have hit the retail sector of U K which is very disastrous for the sector, but from a wider perspective, the major players in the market have not undergone major changes which might reveal that the market is running smoothly for the longer term. This also means that the big players did not change their strategies for competition and did not find a need to undergo major changes. The UK retail sector provides biggest revenues to their companies which in turn increases the GDP growth of the nation. The presence of major players indicates that the sector is strong with major assumption of future growth (GAIN, 2010). Weaknesses: The UK retail market is a mature market which is not intended to grow in volume terms. The margins and earnings from the retail sector are threadbare and mostly the earnings are coming from the online stores. As the economy suffers from recession global downturn, it has been tough going for the UK retail market. According to Verdict research, 2012 growth rate of the UK retail sector would be 1. 2% which is the third lowest growth in the history of UK retail in 49 years (SAS, 2011). It has been forecasted that the non-food items in the retail sector would decline for consecutive fourth year as it would have a decrease of -0.5% (SAS 2011). Food is an essential item in our lives, but since the recession period it has allowed people to spend more but for the same quantity. The greatest weakness is the rising food prices over the world which is affecting sales of the major companies and is resulting in slower growth. The grocery section has been badly hit by the downturn which has decreased the consumers spending and now the industry is termed to be as ‘recession-resilient’. The major price drop has resulted in the industry which has hauled Tesco to provide promotional strategies which is the biggest player in UK retail. Asda did not carry out the move to lower its price and insisted that it was the cheapest provider of consumer goods. The rivalry is intense in the sector and has accounted for low profit margins and growth (GAIN, 2010). Opportunities: Even though the margins are threadbare in UK retail sector, the big four of the retail sector, Tesco, J Sainsbury, Asda and Wm Morrison are planning to buy 4 million of retail space which is equivalent to 130 average supermarket stores (SAS, 2011). This proves that the big players consider a growth in the sector in the future which provides an opportunity to grab market shares. According to the UK economy

Advertising public relation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Advertising public relation - Essay Example It is needless to say that the modern business world is extremely competitive. Therefore the companies look to find the x-factors to stand apart from the rest of the crowd so that the company becomes more interesting and appealing for the media and the public. A favorable reputation can help the company. On the other hand negative publicity can also have negative impact and damage the reputation of the company badly. In simple ways PR can be defined as a way to build up long term relationship with the public or customers. Although PR is an element of promotional mix and there are certain differences between PR and other elements, it is important to understand that positive can only be achieved by using each of the elements of the promotional mix effectively. The study looks to focus on the application of PR to aid the performance of a newly launched product in the market. The product selected is a ready-to-drink green tea. The concerns over the contents of the soft drinks have increa sed as people are becoming more health conscious. Also recent controversies related to the hygienic factors and product has not helped the reputation of the soft drinks. Although the product to be discussed cannot be exactly categorized as hardcore soft drinks, still the product is likely to serve purpose as the soft drinks. The study includes market situation analysis, probable PR strategy, different modes of communication to be used and also a way to successfully evaluate the PR strategy. (Chattopadhyay, 2009. P.370). Fun fruit Pvt. Ltd. is a six years old company. The company produces soft drinks made from fruits such as mango and pineapple. The company looks to achieve concentric product diversification through packaging and pricing strategy. Here it is to be mentioned that the company operates in UK market only. However, the company has launched ready-to-drink green tea called ‘Fizz’. The company looks to brings