EconomicsQ&A by dot point

Investigate the international and regional business cycles including the causes and features of synchronisation, the influence of trade, investment, finance and technology, transport and communication, government economic policies, and global influences on regional and country-specific cycles

Examine global financial flows including the size and pattern of capital flows, the role of the IMF, World Bank and United Nations, and the consequences of financial liberalisation for individual economies

Examine the features and trends of the international economy including the global economy and globalisation, gross world product, trade in goods and services, financial flows, investment and transnational corporations, technology, transport and communication, and the international and regional business cycles

Investigate the basis of free trade and its advantages and disadvantages including the theory of comparative advantage, the role of the World Trade Organisation, and the effects of trading blocs, free trade agreements and protection

Examine the structure of Australia's balance of payments including the current account and the capital and financial accounts, and analyse the links between them

Examine the composition and direction of Australia's trade and financial flows including the changing trade and investment partners, the changing direction of trade, and the impact of Australia's free trade agreements

Investigate Australia's international financial linkages including foreign debt, the foreign debt to GDP ratio, foreign equity, net foreign liabilities, and the implications of these for the Australian economy

Examine the determination of the Australian dollar exchange rate including the influence of demand for and supply of the Australian dollar, the foreign exchange market, and the influence of speculation and Reserve Bank intervention

Examine the issue of distribution of income and wealth in Australia including the measurement of inequality, the Lorenz curve and the Gini coefficient, dimensions and trends in inequality, and the economic and social impacts of inequality

Examine the economic issue of economic growth including the measurement of economic growth, sources of economic growth, the role of aggregate demand and aggregate supply, and the effects of economic growth in Australia

Examine the economic issue of inflation including the measurement of inflation, the difference between headline and underlying inflation, the causes of inflation, and the effects of inflation in Australia

Examine the economic issue of unemployment including the measurement of unemployment, types of unemployment, the causes of unemployment, the non-accelerating inflation rate of unemployment (NAIRU), and the consequences of unemployment

Examine the role of fiscal policy in influencing economic activity, including the structure of the federal budget, the budget outcome, the impact of automatic stabilisers and discretionary changes, and the use of fiscal policy to manage the economy

Examine the role of labour market policies in Australia including national and enterprise wage determination, the role of the Fair Work Commission, labour market programs, the National Employment Standards, and the effect of these policies on the economy

Examine the role of microeconomic policy in improving the efficiency of the Australian economy including the rationale for microeconomic reform, the major reforms undertaken since the 1980s, and the impact of microeconomic reform on aggregate supply, productivity and competitiveness

Examine the role of monetary policy in Australia including the objectives, the cash rate as the policy instrument, the transmission mechanism, and the impact of monetary policy on the economy