The
United States Economy
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- The Federal
Reserve raised interest rates in order to try to slow the economy
down so that prices do not rise too rapidly.
- The U.S.
trade deficit is at a near-record level because imports are very
high, while exports are sluggish. Imports are high because of
the booming U.S. economy, which allows Americans to purchase goods
and services from abroad, and because of higher oil prices. Exports
are sluggish because many foreign economies are weak, preventing
them from purchasing U.S. goods.
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| The
Government Sector |
- Gov. Bush
has proposed cutting taxes by more than $1.3 trillion over the
next 10 years. Vice-President Gore has proposed a more modest
tax cut, with most of the surplus used to pay off the government's
huge debt and to shore up Medicare and Social Security.
- Republicans
support eliminating the federal estate tax because they believe
it is unfair to tax people after they are dead. Democrats oppose
eliminating the tax because the benefits would go to very wealthy
people.
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| Industry
and Labor |
- Flexible
labor markets have made it possible for employers to hire new
workers, without having to worrying about being stuck with them
should their business fail to prosper.
- Judge Thomas
Penfield Jackson determined that Microsoft had broken federal
antitrust laws by trying to stifle competition.
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| The
Financial Sector |
- Technological
changes and globalization have increased investors' ability to
and interest in investing in stock markets all over the world.
Merging allows exchanges to offer investors a wider variety of
stocks.
- Traditional
investors generally invest in stocks they believe have good underlying
value and will appreciate over time. Day traders are not concerned
about underlying value, because they sell the stocks they buy
after a few minutes or hours.
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| The
Global Economy |
- Organized
labor may lose out from increased globalization, as consumers
purchase less expensive imports rather than products made in America.
- U.S. exporters
are hurt by a decline in the Euro, because it makes U.S. goods
more expensive in Europe. U.S. importers are helped by the decline
in the Euro, because it makes in the United States.
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