Question

In a closed economy, saving and investment must be equal, but this is not the case in an open economy. In the following problem, you will explore how saving and investment are connected to the international flow of capital and goods in an economy. Before delving into the relationship between these various components of an economy, you will be asked to recall some relationships between aggregate variables that will be useful in your analysis.
Recall the components that make up GDP. National income (Y) equals total expenditure on the economy's output of goods and services. Thus, where C = consumption, I = investment, G = government purchases, X = exports, M = imports, and NX = net exports:
Y =
Also, national saving is the income of the nation that is left after paying for Therefore, national saving (S) is defined as: S =
Rearranging the previous equation and solving for Y yields Y = . Plugging this into the original equation showing the various components of GDP results in the following relationship:
S =
This is equivalent to S =, since net exports must equal net capital outflow (NCO, also known as net foreign investment).
Now suppose that a country is experiencing a trade surplus. Determine the relationships between the entries in the following table, and enter these relationships using the following symbols: > (greater than), < (less than), or = (equal to).

Answer 1

Answer:

a. Y = C + I + G + NX

b. National saving is the income of the nation that is left after paying for current consumption (C) and government purchases (G).

c. S = Y - C - G

d. Y = S + C + G

e. S = I + NX

f. S = I + NCO

g. Outcomes of a Trade Surplus

Exports > Imports

Net Exports > 0

C + I + G < Y

Saving > Investment

Net Capital Outflow > 0

Explanation:

a. Y = C + I + G + X - M …………………. (1)

If we assumed X is greater than M, we have:

NX = X - M

Substituting NX = X - M into equation (1), we have:

Y = C + I + G + NX

b. Also, national saving is the income of the nation that is left after paying for current consumption (C) and government purchases (G).

c. Therefore, national saving (S) is defined as: S = Y - C - G.

d. Rearranging the previous equation and solving for Y yields Y = S + C + G.

e. Plugging this into the original equation showing the various components of GDP results in the following relationship:

S + C + G = C + I + G + NX

S = C + I + G + NX - C - G

S = I + NX

f. This is equivalent to S = I + NCO, since net exports must equal net capital outflow (NCO, also known as net foreign investment).

g. Now suppose that a country is experiencing a trade surplus. Determine the relationships between the entries in the following table, and enter these relationships using the following symbols: > (greater than), < (less than), or = (equal to).

Note: The omitted table in the question given as follows:

Outcomes of a Trade Surplus

Exports ____ Imports

Net Exports _____ 0

C + I + G _____ Y

Saving ____ Investment

Net Capital Outflow ___ 0

Therefore, the answer is given as follows:

Outcomes of a Trade Surplus

Exports > Imports

Net Exports > 0

C + I + G < Y

Saving > Investment

Net Capital Outflow > 0