Hello,
First of all, thank you very much for presentations. I uploaded all the presentations and texts from December 2 to MS Teams. I also upload Karel’s text about foreign aid from November 25.
Secondly, below I send questions from each presentation / essay that may appear in the final test. No further questions from your presentations / texts that took place on December 2 will appear in the test.
The questions are asked in general, they are not some precise and specific formulations of the questions. It is also not necessary to answer these questions with a long text, it is enough to have about 2-3 sentences as an answer. It is not necessary to learn any graphs, diagrams or equations, etc. Just know the basics.
- Dennis: Poverty trap
- What is “poverty trap”?
- What are the factors that cause and “keep alive” the poverty trap?
- Xiaomo: COVID-19 – China vs. the USA
- Which sectors of the economy were hit negatively by COVID-19 and which positively? (It is not necessary to focus only on China or the USA, you can use any other general example from any country.) State the reasons that led to the positive / negative impact of COVID-19 on these sectors.
- Daniel: Transaction costs and money forms
What are transaction costs? (Coase) The transaction cost approach to the theory of the firm was created by Ronald Coase. Transaction cost refers to the cost of providing for some good or service through the market rather than having it provided from within the firm.
- Is the information free? (from Stigler´s point of view)
- Martin: USD as a reserve currency
What characteristics should a currency have in order to be considered a reserve currency? What are the requirements for a currency to achieve such a status? Price stability and the depth and liquidity of the respective capital market are important elements, and the euro appears to qualify in this regard
What are the advantages and disadvantages of a currency that is considered a reserve currency? Reserve currency status isn’t without its drawbacks, and the problems issuing countries face underscore why mature economies tend to be the ones issuing widely held currencies. Low borrowing costs stemming from issuing a reserve currency may prompt loose spending by both the public and private sectors, which may result in asset bubbles and ballooning government debt. Stimulus spending in the U.S., for example, led Chinese leaders to fear a weak dollar since that would erode the country’s value of dollar-denominated debt.
- (From an economic point of view.)
- Maral: Problems of Dutch disease
- What is Dutch disease? Dependence on oil
How to avoid the negative effects of Dutch disease? There are two basic ways to reduce the threat of Dutch disease: slowing the appreciation of the real exchange rate, and boosting the competitiveness of the adversely affected sectors.
- Kristijan: Migration
What are the “push” and “pull” factors in the context of migration theory? In the context of labor migration, the push factors are often characterized by the lack of job opportunities in sending areas or countries; and the pull factors are the economic opportunities available in the receiving areas. There are multiple factorswhich act to hold people within an area, or attract people to it.
- How do migrants affect the labor market in the economy where they settle?
- Karel: Foreign aid
- Is foreign aid always help? Does it lead to promising economic growth? No, not necessarily
- Is foreign aid motivated only by “charitable” (altruistic) motives? Or are there other “hidden” motives as to why some states help other states?
Just a reminder. There will be no other questions related to the presentations in the test. As I sometimes give links to some other articles, data, etc., it will not be in the test either.
Have a nice day.
Best,
Ondrej