Question

a. How can increases in government spending crowd out investment spending? An increase in government spending increases the use of automatic stabilizers, which reduces private investment spending. causes firms to worry about inflation, which reduces private investment spending. increases the real interest rate, which reduces private investment spending. lowers the real interest rate, which reduces private investment spending. b. Is crowding out a major concern when actual output is below potential output? Why? Crowding out is a major concern, because the goal is always to increase investment spending. is not a major concern, because the Fed will likely lower the real interest rate when actual output is far below potential. is a major concern, because the crowding out effect will outweigh the increase in government spending. is not a major concern, because the Fed will likely raise the real interest rate when actual output is above potential output.

Answer 1

a. increases the real interest rate, which reduces private investment spending.

b. is not a major concern, because the Fed will likely lower the real interest rate when actual output is far below potential.

Step-by-step explanation:

Increase in government spending means that the government would probably have to borrow money from the credit market. Because the government is so large, it will borrow in large amounts which would force rates to rise. At these higher rates, the private sector might find it too expensive to borrow money and so would be crowed out such that they reduce their investment spending.

When the economy is facing an output that is lower than potential, the Fed will engage in monetary policy aimed at reducing interest rates to improve investment spending. This therefore negates the effect of crowing out which means that it would no longer be a major concern.