What exactly is a credit crunch? Why do footballers earn so much more than the rest of us? Which country is likely to be the world's leading economy in 10 years' time?
Daily Telegraph economics editor Edmund Conway introduces and explains the central ideas of economics in a series of fifty essays. Beginning with an exploration of the basic theories, such as Adam Smith's 'invisible hand', and concluding with the latest research into the links between wealth and happiness, he sheds light on all the essential topics needed to understand booms and busts, bulls and bears, and the way the world really works.
Introduction. The invisible hand. Supply and demand. The Malthusian trap. Opportunity cost. Incentives. Division of labour. Comparative advantage. Capitalism. Keynesianism. Monetarism. Communism. Individualism. Supply-side economics. The marginal revolution. Money. Micro and macro. Gross domestic product. Central banks and interest rates. Inflation. Debt and deflation. Taxes. Unemployment. Currencies and exchange rates. Balance of payments. Trust and the law. Energy and oil. Bond markets. Banks. Stocks and shares. Risky business. Boom and bust. Pension and the welfare state. Money markets. Blowing bubbles. Credit crunches. Creative destruction. Home-owning and house prices. Government deficits. Inequality. Globalization. Multilateralism. Protectionism. Technological revolution. Development economics. Environmental economics. Behavioural economics. Game theory. Criminomics. Happynomics. 21st-century economics. Glossary. Index.
