§-Economics syllabus
NSW · NESA← Economics
Economics syllabus, dot point by dot point
Every dot point in the NSW Economics syllabus, in syllabus order, with a focused answer for each. Open any dot point for the answer, exam-style questions and links to related points.
Topic 1: The Global Economy
Module overview →What strategies can be used to promote economic growth and development?
Investigate categories of development including developed, developing, newly industrialised and emerging economies, and examine the factors affecting the growth of newly industrialised and emerging economies
Investigate environmental sustainability and the global economy, including climate change, externalities, resource depletion, and global responses through international agreements and market-based and regulatory strategies
Discuss the differences between developed and developing economies in terms of income levels and quality of life, and analyse how globalisation has affected economic growth and economic development unevenly across nations
How does the global economy operate and what are its key features?
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
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 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 impact of investment, transnational corporations, technology and the movement of labour on the size and structure of the global economy
Examine the methods of protection used by governments, including tariffs, subsidies, quotas and local content rules, and analyse their effects on domestic and global markets
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
Topic 2: Australia's Place in the Global Economy
Module overview →How does Australia engage with the global economy and what is its position relative to other economies?
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
Analyse the effects of exchange rate movements (appreciation and depreciation) on the Australian economy, including the impact on the balance of goods and services, inflation, foreign debt servicing and economic growth, and the J-curve effect
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 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
How does Australia engage with the global economy?
Examine Australia's policies on free trade and protection, including the arguments for and against protection, the methods of protection, and the impact of changes in the terms of trade on the Australian economy
Discuss the impact of the current account deficit (CAD) on external stability, and assess the Pitchford (consenting adults) thesis that a CAD driven by private-sector borrowing does not threaten external stability
Topic 3: Economic Issues
Module overview →What are the major economic issues for the Australian economy and how are they measured?
Investigate the objectives of economic management (economic growth, low unemployment, price stability, external stability, distributional equity, environmental sustainability) and examine the conflicts and trade-offs that arise between them, such as growth versus inflation and growth versus the environment
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 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 issue of environmental sustainability including ecologically sustainable development, market failure, negative externalities, and the impact of climate change on the Australian economy
Examine the economic issue of external stability including the measurement of the current account deficit (CAD), net foreign liabilities, the terms of trade and the exchange rate, and the causes and consequences of external instability for 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
Topic 4: Economic Policies and Management
Module overview →What is the role of economic policy in managing the Australian economy?
Examine the objectives of economic management (economic growth, full employment, price stability, external stability, income and wealth distribution, environmental sustainability) and analyse how the government combines fiscal, monetary and microeconomic policy in a policy mix to pursue them
Examine the role of environmental management policies in achieving ecologically sustainable development, including market-based schemes (emissions trading, subsidies for renewables), direct regulations and standards, quantitative targets, and international agreements
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
Discuss the limitations of economic policy and evaluate the effectiveness of the policy mix in achieving the objectives of economic management