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97-533: In economic policy , austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spending, raising taxes while cutting spending, and lower taxes and lower government spending. Austerity measures are often used by governments that find it difficult to borrow or meet their existing obligations to pay back loans . The measures are meant to reduce
194-457: A forced labor system creating a "corporate paradise" in occupied Haiti. Another historical example of contemporary austerity is Fascist Italy during a liberal period of the economy from 1922 to 1925. The fascist government utilized austerity policies to prevent the democratization of Italy following World War I , with Luigi Einaudi , Maffeo Pantaleoni , Umberto Ricci and Alberto de' Stefani leading this movement. Austerity measures used by
291-701: A 48-hour labour strike in advance of a parliamentary vote on the austerity package, the first such strike since 1974. Economic policy Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.132 via cp1112 cp1112, Varnish XID 389687753 Upstream caches: cp1112 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Fri, 29 Nov 2024 05:33:27 GMT US dollars The United States dollar ( symbol : $ ; currency code : USD ; also abbreviated US$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies ; referred to as
388-707: A country uses the currency of an independent central bank that is legally restricted from buying government debt, for example in the Eurozone . In such a situation, banks and investors may lose confidence in a government's ability or willingness to pay, and either refuse to roll over existing debts, or demand extremely high interest rates. International financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) may demand austerity measures as part of Structural Adjustment Programmes when acting as lender of last resort . Austerity policies may also appeal to
485-509: A disincentive to spend accumulated capital, such as cash repatriation taxes from profits in overseas tax havens and interest on excess reserves paid to banks, increased profits can lead to decreasing growth.) Economists Kenneth Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart wrote in April 2013, "Austerity seldom works without structural reforms – for example, changes in taxes, regulations and labor market policies – and if poorly designed, can disproportionately hit
582-482: A dollar are emitted as Federal Reserve Notes , disregarding these special cases: In the 16th century, Count Hieronymus Schlick of Bohemia began minting coins known as joachimstalers , named for Joachimstal , the valley in which the silver was mined. In turn, the valley's name is titled after Saint Joachim , whereby thal or tal , a cognate of the English word dale , is German for 'valley.' The joachimstaler
679-735: A dollar, and dimes at 0.100 of a dollar. After the adoption of the United States Constitution , the U.S. dollar was defined by the Coinage Act of 1792 . It specified a "dollar" based on the Spanish milled dollar to contain 371 + 4 ⁄ 16 grains of fine silver, or 416.0 grains (26.96 g) of "standard silver" of fineness 371.25/416 = 89.24%; as well as an "eagle" to contain 247 + 4 ⁄ 8 grains of fine gold, or 270.0 grains (17.50 g) of 22 karat or 91.67% fine gold. Alexander Hamilton arrived at these numbers based on
776-406: A downturn is due to a significant private-sector financial surplus, in which consumer savings is not fully invested by businesses. In a healthy economy, private-sector savings placed into the banking system by consumers are borrowed and invested by companies. However, if consumers have increased their savings but companies are not investing the money, a surplus develops. Business investment is one of
873-622: A few cases, U.S. coins) used in circulation. The monetary policy of the United States is conducted by the Federal Reserve System , which acts as the nation's central bank . As of February 10, 2021, currency in circulation amounted to US$ 2.10 trillion , $ 2.05 trillion of which is in Federal Reserve Notes (the remaining $ 50 billion is in the form of coins and older-style United States Notes ). As of September 20, 2023,
970-535: A grain of pure, or four hundred and sixteen grains of standard silver. Section 20 of the Act designates the United States dollar as the unit of currency of the United States: [T]he money of account of the United States shall be expressed in dollars, or units...and that all accounts in the public offices and all proceedings in the courts of the United States shall be kept and had in conformity to this regulation. Unlike
1067-566: A limited extent" as money. Treasury Notes were again printed to help resolve the reduction in public revenues resulting from the Panic of 1837 and the Panic of 1857 , as well as to help finance the Mexican–American War and the Civil War . Paper money was issued again in 1862 without the backing of precious metals due to the Civil War . In addition to Treasury Notes, Congress in 1861 authorized
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#17328584069451164-554: A private-sector depression (represented by the private- and foreign-sector surpluses) was being "contained" by government deficit spending. Economist Paul Krugman also explained in December 2011 the causes of the sizable shift from private-sector deficit to surplus in the U.S.: "This huge move into surplus reflects the end of the housing bubble, a sharp rise in household saving, and a slump in business investment due to lack of customers." One reason why austerity can be counterproductive in
1261-649: A series of revisions to the gold peg was implemented, culminating in the Nixon Shock of August 15, 1971, which suddenly ended the convertibility of dollars to gold. The U.S. dollar has since floated freely on the foreign exchange markets . Congress continued to issue paper money after the Civil War, the latest of which is the Federal Reserve Note that was authorized by the Federal Reserve Act of 1913 . Since
1358-496: A stagnant housing market with no realistic opportunity to reduce private debts. In October 2012, the IMF announced that its forecasts for countries that implemented austerity programs have been consistently overoptimistic, suggesting that tax hikes and spending cuts have been doing more damage than expected and that countries that implemented fiscal stimulus , such as Germany and Austria, did better than expected. The IMF reported that this
1455-487: A treasury assay of the average fine silver content of a selection of worn Spanish dollars , which came out to be 371 grains. Combined with the prevailing gold-silver ratio of 15, the standard for gold was calculated at 371/15 = 24.73 grains fine gold or 26.98 grains 22K gold. Rounding the latter to 27.0 grains finalized the dollar's standard to 24.75 grains of fine gold or 24.75*15 = 371.25 grains = 24.0566 grams = 0.7735 troy ounces of fine silver. The same coinage act also set
1552-437: Is considerable excess capacity, an increase in government borrowing to finance an increase in the deficit does not lead to higher interest rates and does not crowd out private investment. Instead, the higher demand resulting from the increase in the deficit bolsters employment and output directly. The resultant increase in income and economic activity in turn encourages, or "crowds in", additional private spending. Some argue that
1649-403: Is in recession, to reduce unemployment and help spur GDP growth. According to Paul Krugman , since a government is not like a household, reductions in government spending during economic downturns worsen the crisis. Across an economy, one person's spending is another person's income. In other words, if everyone is trying to reduce their spending, the economy can be trapped in what economists call
1746-418: Is known about the size of multipliers, as data availability limits the scope for empirical research. For these countries, Nicoletta Batini , Luc Eyraud and Anke Weber propose a simple method—dubbed the "bucket approach"—to come up with reasonable multiplier estimates. The approach bunches countries into groups (or "buckets") with similar multiplier values, based on their characteristics, and taking into account
1843-474: Is no wonder that, after nearly three years of record low interest rates and massive liquidity injections, industrial economies are still doing so poorly. Flow of funds data for the U.S. show a massive shift away from borrowing to savings by the private sector since the housing bubble burst in 2007. The shift for the private sector as a whole represents over 9 percent of U.S. GDP at a time of zero interest rates. Moreover, this increase in private sector savings exceeds
1940-454: Is offset by greater increases in aggregate demand (private consumption, private investment, and exports). The origin of modern austerity measures is mostly undocumented among academics. During the United States occupation of Haiti that began in 1915, the United States utilized austerity policies where American corporations received a low tax rate while Haitians saw their taxes increase, with
2037-454: Is one of the first words of Section 9, in which the term refers to the Spanish milled dollar , or the coin worth eight Spanish reales . In 1792, the U.S. Congress passed the Coinage Act , of which Section 9 authorized the production of various coins, including: Dollars or Units —each to be of the value of a Spanish milled dollar as the same is now current, and to contain three hundred and seventy-one grains and four sixteenth parts of
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#17328584069452134-399: Is one of three major financial sectoral balances in a country's economy, along with the foreign financial sector (capital account) and the private financial sector. By definition, the sum of the surpluses or deficits across these three sectors must be zero. In the U.S. and many Eurozone countries other than Germany, a foreign financial surplus exists because capital is imported (net) to fund
2231-451: Is operating at or near capacity, higher short-term deficit spending (stimulus) can cause interest rates to rise, resulting in a reduction in private investment, which in turn reduces economic growth. Where there is excess capacity, the stimulus can result in an increase in employment and output. Alberto Alesina , Carlo Favero, and Francesco Giavazzi argue that austerity can be expansionary in situations where government reduction in spending
2328-455: Is that it is derived from the Pillars of Hercules on the Spanish coat of arms of the Spanish dollar . These Pillars of Hercules on the silver Spanish dollar coins take the form of two vertical bars ( || ) and a swinging cloth band in the shape of an S . Yet another explanation suggests that the dollar sign was formed from the capital letters U and S written or printed one on top of
2425-805: The CIA World Factbook , from 2010 to 2011, the unemployment rates in Spain, Greece, Ireland, Portugal, and the UK increased. France and Italy had no significant changes, while in Germany and Iceland the unemployment rate declined. Eurostat reported that Eurozone unemployment reached record levels in March 2013 at 12.1%, up from 11.6% in September 2012 and 10.3% in 2011. Unemployment varied significantly by country. Economist Martin Wolf analyzed
2522-468: The Coinage Act of 1834 the dollar's fine gold equivalent was revised to 23.2 grains; it was slightly adjusted to 23.22 grains (1.505 g) in 1837 (gold-silver ratio ~16). The same act also resolved the difficulty in minting the "standard silver" of 89.24% fineness by revising the dollar's alloy to 412.5 grains, 90% silver, still containing 371.25 grains fine silver. Gold was also revised to 90% fineness: 25.8 grains gross, 23.22 grains fine gold. Following
2619-544: The Comstock Lode in the 1870s. This was the so-called "Crime of '73". The Gold Standard Act of 1900 repealed the U.S. dollar's historic link to silver and defined it solely as 23.22 grains (1.505 g) of fine gold (or $ 20.67 per troy ounce of 480 grains). In 1933, gold coins were confiscated by Executive Order 6102 under Franklin D. Roosevelt , and in 1934 the standard was changed to $ 35 per troy ounce fine gold, or 13.71 grains (0.888 g) per dollar. After 1968
2716-527: The Continental Congress resolved that the money unit of the United States, the dollar, would contain 375.64 grains of fine silver; on August 8, 1786, the Continental Congress continued that definition and further resolved that the money of account, corresponding with the division of coins, would proceed in a decimal ratio , with the sub-units being mills at 0.001 of a dollar, cents at 0.010 of
2813-517: The Dutch pioneered in modern-day New York in the 17th century the use and the counting of money in silver dollars in the form of German-Dutch reichsthalers and native Dutch leeuwendaalders ('lion dollars'), it was the ubiquitous Spanish American eight-real coin which became exclusively known as the dollar since the 18th century. The colloquialism buck(s) (much like the British quid for
2910-605: The First World War , and displaced the pound sterling as the world's primary reserve currency by the Bretton Woods Agreement towards the end of the Second World War . The dollar is the most widely used currency in international transactions , and a free-floating currency . It is also the official currency in several countries and the de facto currency in many others, with Federal Reserve Notes (and, in
3007-578: The Weimar Republic of Germany were unpopular and contributed towards the increased support for the Nazi Party in the 1930s. Austerity measures are typically pursued if there is a threat that a government cannot honour its debt obligations. This may occur when a government has borrowed in currencies that it has no right to issue, for example a South American country that borrows in US dollars . It may also occur if
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3104-499: The dollar , U.S. dollar , American dollar , or colloquially buck ) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries . The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar , divided it into 100 cents , and authorized the minting of coins denominated in dollars and cents. U.S. banknotes are issued in the form of Federal Reserve Notes , popularly called greenbacks due to their predominantly green color. The U.S. dollar
3201-445: The paradox of thrift , worsening the recession as GDP falls. In the past this has been offset by encouraging consumerism to rely on debt, but after the 2008 crisis, this has looked like a less and less viable option for sustainable economics. Krugman argues that, if the private sector is unable or unwilling to consume at a level that increases GDP and employment sufficiently, then the government should be spending more in order to offset
3298-401: The pound sterling ) is often used to refer to dollars of various nations, including the U.S. dollar. This term, dating to the 18th century, may have originated with the colonial leather trade, or it may also have originated from a poker term. Greenback is another nickname, originally applied specifically to the 19th-century Demand Note dollars, which were printed black and green on
3395-507: The trade deficit . Further, there is a private-sector financial surplus because household savings exceed business investment. By definition, a government budget deficit must exist so all three net to zero: for example, the U.S. government budget deficit in 2011 was approximately 10% of GDP (8.6% of GDP of which was federal), offsetting a foreign financial surplus of 4% of GDP and a private-sector surplus of 6% of GDP. Wolf explained in July 2012 that
3492-499: The "crowding-in" model is an appropriate solution for current economic conditions. According to economist Martin Wolf , the U.S. and many Eurozone countries experienced rapid increases in their budget deficits in the wake of the 2008 crisis as a result of significant private-sector retrenchment and ongoing capital account surpluses. Policy choices had little to do with these deficit increases. This makes austerity measures counterproductive. Wolf explained that government fiscal balance
3589-518: The Constitution provides that "a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time", which is further specified by Section 331 of Title 31 of the U.S. Code. The sums of money reported in the "Statements" are currently expressed in U.S. dollars, thus the U.S. dollar may be described as the unit of account of the United States. "Dollar"
3686-571: The Federal Reserve estimated that the total amount of currency in circulation was approximately US$ 2.33 trillion . Article I , Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution provides that Congress has the power "[t]o coin money ." Laws implementing this power are currently codified in Title 31 of the U.S. Code , under Section 5112, which prescribes the forms in which the United States dollars should be issued. These coins are both designated in
3783-447: The OECD and associated international finance organisations have framed the debate to promote austerity, for example, the concept of 'wage-push inflation' which ignores the role played by the profiteering of private companies, and seeks to blame inflation on wages being too high. According to a 2020 study, austerity increases the risk of default in situations of severe fiscal stress, but reduces
3880-927: The Spanish milled dollar, the Continental Congress and the Coinage Act prescribed a decimal system of units to go with the unit dollar, as follows: the mill , or one-thousandth of a dollar; the cent , or one-hundredth of a dollar; the dime , or one-tenth of a dollar; and the eagle , or ten dollars. The current relevance of these units: The Spanish peso or dollar was historically divided into eight reales (colloquially, bits ) – hence pieces of eight . Americans also learned counting in non-decimal bits of 12 + 1 ⁄ 2 cents before 1857 when Mexican bits were more frequently encountered than American cents; in fact this practice survived in New York Stock Exchange quotations until 2001. In 1854, Secretary of
3977-530: The Treasury James Guthrie proposed creating $ 100, $ 50, and $ 25 gold coins, to be referred to as a union , half union , and quarter union , respectively, thus implying a denomination of 1 Union = $ 100. However, no such coins were ever struck, and only patterns for the $ 50 half union exist. When currently issued in circulating form, denominations less than or equal to a dollar are emitted as U.S. coins , while denominations greater than or equal to
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4074-837: The Treasury to borrow $ 50 million in the form of Demand Notes , which did not bear interest but could be redeemed on demand for precious metals. However, by December 1861, the Union government's supply of specie was outstripped by demand for redemption and they were forced to suspend redemption temporarily. In February 1862 Congress passed the Legal Tender Act of 1862 , issuing United States Notes , which were not redeemable on demand and bore no interest, but were legal tender , meaning that creditors had to accept them at face value for any payment except for public debts and import tariffs. However, silver and gold coins continued to be issued, resulting in
4171-450: The United States and to supervise its banking system, particularly in the aftermath of the Panic of 1907 . For most of the post-war period, the U.S. government has financed its own spending by borrowing heavily from the dollar-lubricated global capital markets, in debts denominated in its own currency and at minimal interest rates. This ability to borrow heavily without facing a significant balance of payments crisis has been described as
4268-625: The United States until the Coinage Act of 1857 . In particular, colonists' familiarity with the Spanish two- real quarter peso was the reason for issuing a quasi-decimal 25-cent quarter dollar coin rather than a 20-cent coin. For the relationship between the Spanish dollar and the individual state colonial currencies, see Connecticut pound , Delaware pound , Georgia pound , Maryland pound , Massachusetts pound , New Hampshire pound , New Jersey pound , New York pound , North Carolina pound , Pennsylvania pound , Rhode Island pound , South Carolina pound , and Virginia pound . On July 6, 1785,
4365-402: The United States was a significant recipient of wartime gold inflows. After the United States emerged as an even stronger global superpower during the Second World War , the Bretton Woods Agreement of 1944 established the U.S. dollar as the world's primary reserve currency and the only post-war currency linked to gold. Despite all links to gold being severed in 1971, the dollar continues to be
4462-528: The alternative of the government running a higher budget deficit. In the aftermath of the Great Recession , austerity measures in many European countries were followed by rising unemployment and slower GDP growth. The result was increased debt-to-GDP ratios despite reductions in budget deficits. Theoretically in some cases, particularly when the output gap is low, austerity can have the opposite effect and stimulate economic growth. For example, when an economy
4559-581: The austerity policy of the Eurozone achieves not only the reduction of budget deficits. The goal of economic consolidation influences the future development of the European social model . With the exception of Germany, each of these countries had public-debt-to-GDP ratios that increased from 2010 to 2011, as indicated in the chart at right. Greece's public-debt-to-GDP ratio increased from 143% in 2010 to 165% in 2011 Indicating despite declining budget deficits GDP growth
4656-513: The average Spanish dollar in circulation. The new U.S. silver dollar of 371.25 grains (24.057 g) therefore compared favorably and was received at par with the Spanish dollar for foreign payments, and after 1803 the United States Mint had to suspend making this coin out of its limited resources since it failed to stay in domestic circulation. It was only after Mexican independence in 1821 when their peso's fine silver content of 377.1 grains
4753-496: The backside, created by Abraham Lincoln to finance the North for the Civil War . It is still used to refer to the U.S. dollar (but not to the dollars of other countries). The term greenback is also used by the financial press in other countries, such as Australia , New Zealand , South Africa , and India . Other well-known names of the dollar as a whole in denominations include greenmail , green , and dead presidents ,
4850-435: The budget deficit by bringing government revenues closer to expenditures. Proponents of these measures state that this reduces the amount of borrowing required and may also demonstrate a government's fiscal discipline to creditors and credit rating agencies and make borrowing easier and cheaper as a result. In most macroeconomic models, austerity policies which reduce government spending lead to increased unemployment in
4947-440: The buying and selling of goods. This allowed the value of things to remain fairly constant over time, except for the influx and outflux of gold and silver in the nation's economy. Though a Spanish dollar freshly minted after 1772 theoretically contained 417.7 grains of silver of fineness 130/144 (or 377.1 grains fine silver), reliable assays of the period in fact confirmed a fine silver content of 370.95 grains (24.037 g) for
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#17328584069455044-494: The case of Alberto Alesina (2009), whose pro-austerity works were "thoroughly debunked by the likes of the economists, the IMF, and the Centre for Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP)." Other anti-austerity economists, such as Seymour have argued that the debate must be reframed as a social and class movement, and its impact judged accordingly, since statecraft is viewed as the main goal. Further, critics such as Major have highlighted how
5141-451: The change in GDP, according to the equation derived from the IMF data used in his analysis. Similarly, economist Paul Krugman analyzed the relationship between GDP and reduction in budget deficits for several European countries in April 2012 and concluded that austerity was slowing growth. He wrote: "this also implies that 1 euro of austerity yields only about 0.4 euros of reduced deficit, even in
5238-418: The collapse into massive fiscal deficit between 2007 and 2009, because there was none of any importance. The collapse is explained by the massive shift of the private sector from financial deficit into surplus or, in other words, from boom to bust." Wolf also wrote that several European economies face the same scenario and that a lack of deficit spending would likely have resulted in a depression. He argued that
5335-414: The currency, a practice compared to the policies of European monarchs. The currency as we know it today did not get the faces they currently have until after the early 20th century; before that "heads" side of coinage used profile faces and striding, seated, and standing figures from Greek and Roman mythology and composite Native Americans. The last coins to be converted to profiles of historic Americans were
5432-566: The decline in private spending. Keynesian theory is proposed as being responsible for post-war boom years, before the 1970s, and when public sector investment was at its highest across Europe, partially encouraged by the Marshall Plan . An important component of economic output is business investment, but there is no reason to expect it to stabilize at full utilization of the economy's resources. High business profits do not necessarily lead to increased economic growth. (When businesses and banks have
5529-408: The deficit causes interest rates to rise and higher interest rates reduce or "crowd out" private investment, reducing growth. This theory explains why large and sustained government deficits take a toll on growth: they reduce capital formation. But this argument rests on how government deficits affect interest rates, and the relationship between government deficits and interest rates varies. When there
5626-607: The depreciation of the newly printed notes through Gresham's law . In 1869, Supreme Court ruled in Hepburn v. Griswold that Congress could not require creditors to accept United States Notes, but overturned that ruling the next year in the Legal Tender Cases . In 1875, Congress passed the Specie Payment Resumption Act , requiring the Treasury to allow U.S. Notes to be redeemed for gold after January 1, 1879. Though
5723-647: The dime (1946), the half Dollar (1948), and the Dollar (1971). After the American Revolution , the Thirteen Colonies became independent . Freed from British monetary regulations, they each issued £sd paper money to pay for military expenses. The Continental Congress also began issuing "Continental Currency" denominated in Spanish dollars. For its value relative to states' currencies, see Early American currency . Continental currency depreciated badly during
5820-426: The discontinuation of all other types of notes (Gold Certificates in 1933, Silver Certificates in 1963, and United States Notes in 1971), U.S. dollar notes have since been issued exclusively as Federal Reserve Notes . The U.S. dollar first emerged as an important international reserve currency in the 1920s, displacing the British pound sterling as it emerged from the First World War relatively unscathed and since
5917-421: The dollar came under the gold standard de jure only after 1900, the bimetallic era was ended de facto when the Coinage Act of 1873 suspended the minting of the standard silver dollar of 412.5 Troy grains = 26.73 g; 0.859 ozt, the only fully legal tender coin that individuals could convert bullion into in unlimited (or Free silver ) quantities, and right at the onset of the silver rush from
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#17328584069456014-423: The effect of (some) temporary factors such as the state of the business cycle. Different tax and spending choices of equal magnitude have different economic effects: For example, the U.S. Congressional Budget Office estimated that the payroll tax (levied on all wage earners) has a higher multiplier (impact on GDP) than does the income tax (which is levied primarily on wealthier workers). In other words, raising
6111-550: The implementation of austerity measures following the 2007–2008 financial crisis was an attempt to preserve the neoliberal capitalist model. In the 1930s during the Great Depression , anti-austerity arguments gained more prominence. John Maynard Keynes became a well known anti-austerity economist, arguing that "The boom, not the slump, is the right time for austerity at the Treasury." Contemporary Keynesian economists argue that budget deficits are appropriate when an economy
6208-439: The increase in government borrowings (5.8 percent of GDP), which suggests that the government is not doing enough to offset private sector deleveraging." Many scholars have argued that how the debate surrounding austerity is framed has a heavy impact on the view of austerity in the public eye, and how the public understands macroeconomics as a whole. Wren-Lewis, for example, coined the term 'mediamacro', which refers to "the role of
6305-397: The latter of which referring to the deceased presidents pictured on most bills. Dollars in general have also been known as bones (e.g. "twenty bones" = $ 20). The newer designs, with portraits displayed in the main body of the obverse (rather than in cameo insets), upon paper color-coded by denomination, are sometimes referred to as bigface notes or Monopoly money . Piastre
6402-417: The longer term, reduced government spending can reduce GDP growth if, for example, cuts to education spending leave a country's workforce less able to do high-skilled jobs or if cuts to infrastructure investment impose greater costs on business than they saved through lower taxes. In both cases, if reduced government spending leads to reduced GDP growth, austerity may lead to a higher debt-to-GDP ratio than
6499-637: The major components of GDP. For example, a U.S. private-sector financial deficit from 2004 to 2008 transitioned to a large surplus of savings over investment that exceeded $ 1 trillion by early 2009, and remained above $ 800 billion into September 2012. Part of this investment reduction was related to the housing market, a major component of investment. This surplus explains how even significant government deficit spending would not increase interest rates (because businesses still have access to ample savings if they choose to borrow and invest it, so interest rates are not bid upward) and how Federal Reserve action to increase
6596-403: The media reproducing particularly corrosive forms of economic illiteracy—of which the idea that deficits are ipso facto 'bad' is a strong example." This can go as far as ignoring economists altogether; however, it often manifests itself as a drive in which a minority of economists whose ideas about austerity have been thoroughly debunked being pushed to the front to justify public policy, such as in
6693-401: The modern-day World Bank Group , establishing the infrastructure for conducting international payments and accessing the global capital markets using the U.S. dollar. The monetary policy of the United States is conducted by the Federal Reserve System , which acts as the nation's central bank . It was founded in 1913 under the Federal Reserve Act in order to furnish an elastic currency for
6790-672: The money supply does not result in inflation (because the economy is awash with savings with no place to go). Economist Richard Koo described similar effects for several of the developed world economies in December 2011: "Today private sectors in the U.S., the U.K., Spain, and Ireland (but not Greece) are undergoing massive deleveraging [paying down debt rather than spending] in spite of record low interest rates. This means these countries are all in serious balance sheet recessions . The private sectors in Japan and Germany are not borrowing, either. With borrowers disappearing and banks reluctant to lend, it
6887-512: The numerical amount, is used for the U.S. dollar (as well as for many other currencies). The sign was perhaps the result of a late 18th-century evolution of the scribal abbreviation p for the peso , the common name for the Spanish dollars that were in wide circulation in the New World from the 16th to the 19th centuries. The p and the s eventually came to be written over each other giving rise to $ . Another popular explanation
6984-546: The other. This theory, popularized by novelist Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged , does not consider the fact that the symbol was already in use before the formation of the United States. The U.S. dollar was introduced at par with the Spanish-American silver dollar (or Spanish peso , Spanish milled dollar , eight-real coin , piece-of-eight ). The latter was produced from the rich silver mine output of Spanish America ,
7081-417: The payroll tax by $ 1 as part of an austerity strategy would slow the economy more than would raising the income tax by $ 1, resulting in less net deficit reduction. In theory, it would stimulate the economy and reduce the deficit if the payroll tax were lowered and the income tax raised in equal amounts. The term "crowding out" refers to the extent to which an increase in the budget deficit offsets spending in
7178-408: The poor and middle class. Our consistent advice has been to avoid withdrawing fiscal stimulus too quickly, a position identical to that of most mainstream economists." To help improve the U.S. economy, they (Rogoff and Reinhart) advocated reductions in mortgage principal for 'underwater homes' – those whose negative equity (where the value of the asset is less than the mortgage principal) can lead to
7275-442: The private sector resulted in calls to cut back the profligacy of the public sector.) According to Mark Blyth , the concept of austerity emerged in the 20th century, when large states acquired sizable budgets. However, Blyth argues that the theories and sensibilities about the role of the state and capitalist markets that underline austerity emerged from the 17th century onwards. Austerity is grounded in liberal economics ' view of
7372-447: The private sector. Economist Laura Tyson wrote in June 2012, "By itself an increase in the deficit, either in the form of an increase in government spending or a reduction in taxes, causes an increase in demand". How this affects output, employment, and growth depends on what happens to interest rates: When the economy is operating near capacity, government borrowing to finance an increase in
7469-600: The relationship between cumulative GDP growth in 2008 to 2012 and total reduction in budget deficits due to austerity policies in several European countries during April 2012 (see chart at right). He concluded, "In all, there is no evidence here that large fiscal contractions budget deficit reductions bring benefits to confidence and growth that offset the direct effects of the contractions. They bring exactly what one would expect: small contractions bring recessions and big contractions bring depressions." Changes in budget balances (deficits or surpluses) explained approximately 53% of
7566-478: The rise in the price of silver during the California Gold Rush and the disappearance of circulating silver coins, the Coinage Act of 1853 reduced the standard for silver coins less than $ 1 from 412.5 grains to 384 grains (24.9 g), 90% silver per 100 cents (slightly revised to 25.0 g, 90% silver in 1873). The Act also limited the free silver right of individuals to convert bullion into only one coin,
7663-514: The risk of default in situations of low fiscal stress. During the European debt crisis , many countries embarked on austerity programs, reducing their budget deficits relative to GDP from 2010 to 2011. According to the CIA World Factbook , Greece decreased its budget deficit from 10.4% of GDP in 2010 to 9.6% in 2011. Iceland, Italy, Ireland, Portugal, France, and Spain also decreased their budget deficits from 2010 to 2011 relative to GDP but
7760-559: The section as " legal tender " in payment of debts. The Sacagawea dollar is one example of the copper alloy dollar, in contrast to the American Silver Eagle which is pure silver . Section 5112 also provides for the minting and issuance of other coins, which have values ranging from one cent ( U.S. Penny ) to 100 dollars. These other coins are more fully described in Coins of the United States dollar . Article I, Section 9 of
7857-527: The short run. No wonder, then, that the whole austerity enterprise is spiraling into disaster." The Greek government-debt crisis brought a package of austerity measures, put forth by the EU and the IMF mostly in the context of the three successive bailouts the country endured from 2010 to 2018; it was met with great anger by the Greek public, leading to riots and social unrest. On 27 June 2011, trade union organizations began
7954-419: The short term. These reductions in employment usually occur directly in the public sector and indirectly in the private sector . Where austerity policies are enacted using tax increases, these can reduce consumption by cutting household disposable income . Reduced government spending can reduce gross domestic product (GDP) growth in the short term as government expenditure is itself a component of GDP. In
8051-552: The silver dollar at the rate of 1 silver dollar to 1000 continental dollars. This resulted in the clause "No state shall... make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts" being written into the United States Constitution article 1, section 10 . From implementation of the 1792 Mint Act to the 1900 implementation of the gold standard , the dollar was on a bimetallic silver-and-gold standard, defined as either 371.25 grains (24.056 g) of fine silver or 24.75 grains of fine gold (gold-silver ratio 15). Subsequent to
8148-474: The silver dollar of 412.5 grains; smaller coins of lower standard can only be produced by the United States Mint using its own bullion. Summary and links to coins issued in the 19th century: In order to finance the War of 1812 , Congress authorized the issuance of Treasury Notes , interest-bearing short-term debt that could be used to pay public dues. While they were intended to serve as debt, they did function "to
8245-450: The state and sovereign debt as deeply problematic. Blyth traces the discourse of austerity back to John Locke 's theory of private property and derivative theory of the state, David Hume 's ideas about money and the virtue of merchants , and Adam Smith 's theories on economic growth and taxes. On the basis of classic liberal ideas, austerity emerged as a doctrine of neoliberalism in the 20th century. Economist David M. Kotz suggests that
8342-467: The sudden shift in the private sector from deficit to surplus forced the U.S. government balance into deficit: "The financial balance of the private sector shifted towards surplus by the almost unbelievable cumulative total of 11.2 per cent of gross domestic product between the third quarter of 2007 and the second quarter of 2009, which was when the financial deficit of US government (federal and state) reached its peak. ... No fiscal policy changes explain
8439-414: The value of an eagle at 10 dollars, and the dollar at 1 ⁄ 10 eagle. It called for silver coins in denominations of 1, 1 ⁄ 2 , 1 ⁄ 4 , 1 ⁄ 10 , and 1 ⁄ 20 dollar, as well as gold coins in denominations of 1, 1 ⁄ 2 and 1 ⁄ 4 eagle. The value of gold or silver contained in the dollar was then converted into relative value in the economy for
8536-423: The war, giving rise to the famous phrase "not worth a continental". A primary problem was that monetary policy was not coordinated between Congress and the states, which continued to issue bills of credit. Additionally, neither Congress nor the governments of the several states had the will or the means to retire the bills from circulation through taxation or the sale of bonds. The currency was ultimately replaced by
8633-420: The wealthier class of creditors, who prefer low inflation and the higher probability of payback on their government securities by less profligate governments. More recently austerity has been pursued after governments became highly indebted by assuming private debts following banking crises. (This occurred after Ireland assumed the debts of its private banking sector during the European debt crisis . This rescue of
8730-408: The world's foremost reserve currency for international trade to this day. The Bretton Woods Agreement of 1944 also defined the post-World War II monetary order and relations among modern-day independent states , by setting up a system of rules, institutions, and procedures to regulate the international monetary system . The agreement founded the International Monetary Fund and other institutions of
8827-414: Was due to fiscal multipliers that were considerably larger than expected: for example, the IMF estimated that fiscal multipliers based on data from 28 countries ranged between 0.9 and 1.7. In other words, a 1% GDP fiscal consolidation (i.e., austerity) would reduce GDP between 0.9% and 1.7%, thus inflicting far more economic damage than the 0.5 previously estimated in IMF forecasts. In many countries, little
8924-412: Was firmly upheld, which the U.S. later had to compete with using a heavier 378.0 grains (24.49 g) Trade dollar coin . The early currency of the United States did not exhibit faces of presidents, as is the custom now; although today, by law, only the portrait of a deceased individual may appear on United States currency. In fact, the newly formed government was against having portraits of leaders on
9021-461: Was later shortened to the German taler , a word that eventually found its way into many languages, including: tolar ( Czech , Slovak and Slovenian ); daler ( Danish and Swedish ); talar ( Polish ); dalar and daler ( Norwegian ); daler or daalder ( Dutch ); talari ( Ethiopian ); tallér ( Hungarian ); tallero ( Italian ); دولار ( Arabic ); and dollar ( English ). Though
9118-737: Was minted in Mexico City , Potosí (Bolivia), Lima (Peru), and elsewhere, and was in wide circulation throughout the Americas, Asia, and Europe from the 16th to the 19th centuries. The minting of machine-milled Spanish dollars since 1732 boosted its worldwide reputation as a trade coin and positioned it to be the model for the new currency of the United States . Even after the United States Mint commenced issuing coins in 1792, locally minted dollars and cents were less abundant in circulation than Spanish American pesos and reales ; hence Spanish, Mexican, and American dollars all remained legal tender in
9215-487: Was not sufficient to support a decline in the debt-to-GDP ratio for these countries during this period. Eurostat reported that the overall debt-to-GDP ratio for the EA17 was 70.1% in 2008, 80.0% in 2009, 85.4% in 2010, 87.3% in 2011, and 90.6% in 2012. Further, real GDP in the EA17 declined for six straight quarters from Q4 2011 to Q1 2013. Unemployment is another variable considered in evaluating austerity measures. According to
9312-461: Was originally defined under a bimetallic standard of 371.25 grains (24.057 g) (0.7734375 troy ounces) fine silver or, from 1834 , 23.22 grains (1.505 g) fine gold, or $ 20.67 per troy ounce . The Gold Standard Act of 1900 linked the dollar solely to gold. From 1934, its equivalence to gold was revised to $ 35 per troy ounce . In 1971 all links to gold were repealed. The U.S. dollar became an important international reserve currency after
9409-639: Was the original French word for the U.S. dollar, used for example in the French text of the Louisiana Purchase . Though the U.S. dollar is called dollar in Modern French, the term piastre is still used among the speakers of Cajun French and New England French , as well as speakers in Haiti and other French-speaking Caribbean islands. Nicknames specific to denomination: The symbol $ , usually written before
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