Money supply 貨幣供給
The quantity of money available in the economy
 
Monopolistic competition 壟斷競爭
A market structure in which many firms sell products that are similar but not identical
 
Monopoly 壟斷
A firm that is the sole seller of a product without close substitutes
 
Multiplier effect 乘數效應
The additional shifts in aggregate demand that result when expansionary fiscal policy increases income and thereby increases consumer spending
 
Mutual fund 共同基金
An institution that sells shares to the public and uses the proceeds to buy a portfolio of stocks and bonds
 
M1, M2, M3 貨幣供給量的度量
measures of the money supply: M1 includes currency and checking accounts; M2 includes M1 plus savings deposits, CDs, and money market funds; M3 includes M2 plus large-denomination savings deposits and institutional money market mutual funds
 
managerial slack 管理松懈
the lack of managerial efficiency (for instance, in cutting costs) that occurs when firms are insulated from competition
 
marginal costs and benefits 邊際成本和邊際收益
costs and benefits that result from choosing a little bit more of one thing and a little bit less of another
 
marginal propensity to consume 邊際消費傾向
the amount by which consumption increases when disposable income increases by a dollar
 
marginal propensity to import 邊際進口傾向
the amount by which imports increase when disposable income increases by a dollar
 
marginal propensity to save 邊際儲蓄傾向
the amount by which savings increase when disposable income increases by a dollar
 
marginal utility 邊際效用
the extra utility, or enjoyment, a person receives from the consumption of one additional unit of a goo
 
market clearing 市場出清
situation that exists when there is neither excess supply nor excess demand
 
market failures approach 市場失靈論
the argument that government may have an economic role to play when markets fail to produce efficient outcomes
 
market labor supply curve 勞動的市場供給曲線
the relationship between the wage paid and the amount of labor willingly supplied, found by adding up the labor supply curves of all individuals in the economy
 
median voter 中間投票人
the voter such that half the population have preferences on one side of this voter (for instance, they want higher government expenditures and taxes),while the other half of the population have preferences on the other side of this voter (they want lower taxes and expenditures)
 
merit goods and bads 公益品和公害品
goods that are determined by the government to be good or bad for people, regardless for whether people desire them for themselves or not
 
mixed economy 混合經濟
an economy that allocates resources through a mixture of public (governmental)and private decision making
 
model 模型
a set of assumptions and data used by economists to study an aspect of the economy and make predictions about the future or about the consequences of various policy changes
 
Modigliani-Miller theorem 莫迪利安尼—米勒定理
the theorem that says that under a simplified set of conditions, the manner in which a firm finances itself does not matter
 
monetarists 貨幣主義者
economists who emphasize the importance of money in the economy; they tend to believe that an appropriate monetary policy is all the economy needs from the government, and market forces will otherwise solve any macroeconomic problems
 
moral hazard 敗德；道德陷阱
principle that says that those who purchase insurance have a reduced incentive to avoid what they are insured against
 
multiplier-accelerator model 乘數—加速數模型
a model that relates business cycles to the internal workings of the economy, showing how changes in investment and output reinforce each other; the central ingredients of the model are the multiplier and the accelerator
 
multilateral trade 多邊貿易
trade between more than two parties
 
N
 
Nash equilibrium 納什均衡
A situation in which economic actors interacting with one another each choose their best strategy given the strategies that all the other actors have chosen
 
National saving (saving) 國民儲蓄
The total income in the economy that remains after paying for consumption and government purchases
 
Natural monopoly 自然壟斷
A monopoly that arises because a single firm can supply a good or service to an entire market at a smaller cost than could two or more firms
 
Natural rate of unemployment 自然失業率
The normal rate of unemployment around which the unemployment rate fluctuates
 
Natural resources 自然資源
The inputs into the production of goods and services that are provided by nature, such as land, rivers, and mineral deposits
 
Natural-rate hypothesis 自然率假說
The claim that unemployment eventually returns to its normal, or natural, rate, regardless of the rate of inflation
 
Net exports 凈出口
The value of a nation's exports minus the value of its imports, also called the trade balance; Spending on domestically produced goods by foreigners (exports) minus spending on foreign goods by domestic residents (imports)
 
Net foreign investment 國外凈投資
The purchase of foreign assets by domestic residents minus the purchase of domestic assets by foreigners
 
Nominal GDP 名義GDP
The production of goods and services valued at current prices
 
Nominal Variables 名義變量
Variables measured in monetary units
 
Nominal exchange rate 名義匯率
The rate at which a person can trade the currency of one country for the currency of another
 
Nominal interest rate 名義利率
The interest rate as usually reported without a correction for the effects of inflation
 
Normal good 正常物品
A good for which an increase in income raises the quantity demanded; A good for which, other things being equal, an increase in income leads to an increase in quantity demanded
 
Normative statements 規范表述
Claims that attempt to prescribe how the world should be
 
natural endowments 自然稟賦
a country's natural resources, like good climate, fertile land, or minerals
 
net export function 凈出口函數
a curve that gives the level of net exports at each level of income
 
net domestic product (NDP) 國內生產凈值
GDP minus the value of the depreciation of the country's capital goods
 
new classical economists 新古典經濟學家
economists who, beginning in the 1970;s, built on the tradition of classical economists and believed that by and large, market forces, if left to themselves, would solve the problems of unemployment and recessions
 
new growth economists 新增長經濟學家
economists who, beginning in the 1980's, sought to understand better the basic forces that led the economy to grow fast at one time and slower at another, or some countries to grow faster than others
 
new Keynesian economists 新凱恩斯主義經濟學家
economists who, beginning the 1980's, built on the tradition of Keynesian economists and focused attention on unemployment; they sought explanations for the failure of wages and prices to adjust to make labor markets and possibly other markets clear
 
newly industrialized countries 新工業化國家
nations that have recently moved from begin quite poor to being middle-income countries; including South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong
 
normative economics 規范經濟學
economics in which the conclusions rest on value judgments as well as facts and theories
 
O
 
Oligopoly 寡頭
A market structure in which only a few sellers offer similar or identical products
 
Open economy 開放經濟
An economy that interacts freely with other economies around the world
 
Open-market operations 公開市場活動
The purchase and sale of United States government bonds by the Fed
 
Opportunity cost 機會成本
Whatever must be given up to obtain some item
 
Okun's law 奧肯定律
the observation that as the economy pulls out of a recession, output increases more than proportionately to increases in employment
 
opportunity sets 機會集合
a summary of the choices available to individuals, as defined by budget constraints and time constraints
 
output per capita 人均產量
a nation's output divided by the number of individuals in the country
 
outputs 產量
the outcomes of a production process
 
overhead costs 管理費用
the costs a firm must pay just to remain in operation. They do not depend on the scale of production
 
 
P
 
Perfect complements 完全互補品
Two goods with right-angle indifference curves
 
Perfect substitutes 完全替代品
Two goods with straight-line indifference curves
 
Permanent income 持久收入
A person's normal income
 
Phillips curve 菲利普斯曲線
A curve that shows the short-run tradeoff between inflation and unemployment
 
Physical capital 物質資本
The stock of equipment and structures that are used to produce goods and services