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Definition: inflation from Philip's Encyclopedia

Continual upward movement of prices. Although normally associated with periods of prosperity, inflation may also occur during recessions. It usually occurs when there is relatively full employment. Under 'cost-push' inflation, prices rise because the producers' costs increase. Under 'demand-pull' inflation, prices increase because of excessive consumer demand for goods.


Inflation

From The SAGE Encyclopedia of Economics and Society
Inflation is generally described as a sustained increase in the level of prices. It is challenging to identify which factors generate inflationary pressures. Interest in these factors is at the core of active policies on inflation control. These policies are not neutral with respect to the consequences that they have on the distribution of national income; since inflationary and anti-inflationary policies change the national income distribution, they may lead to conflicts between social groups and, at times, between states. A particular form of inflation is hyperinflation . Hyperinflation happens when policy makers lose control of the economy; it is a disruptive form of inflation that creates an unstable and unpredictable environment for people and firms. Each nation has specific inflationary dynamics. This is because inflation is to a certain extent determined by the economic and monetary policies that a government puts in place. The term inflation cannot be applied if the prices of…
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Full text Article inflation

From Collins Dictionary of Business
CPI annual percentage change. Source:...
An increase in the general level of PRICES in an economy that is sustained over time. In the UK the rate of inflation has been measured since December 2003 by a CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (CPI) in order to bring it into line with European Union practice which uses a ‘harmonised index of consumer prices’ ( …
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Full text Article inflation

From The Penguin Dictionary of Sociology
This is a rise in the general level of prices which has the effect of reducing the purchasing power of a given amount of money. The investigation of inflation has mainly been confined to economics, but in the 1970s sociologists became interested in the social processes that lie behind this…
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Full text Article inflation

From Cambridge Dictionary of Sociology
This refers to an overall increase in the price of goods and services so that the purchasing power of money declines. It is an episodic feature of capitalism , but became a focus of sociological debate in the 1970s when inflation in many advanced capitalist economies exceeded 10 percent per annum. …
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Full text Article inflation

From Astronomy Encyclopedia
Faster-than-light expansion of the universe very early in its evolution. The BIG BANG theory had several problems, specifically the horizon problem and the flatness problem. The horizon problem occurred because measurements of the background temperature from every direction are nearly identical, but…
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Full text Article inflation

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
in economics, persistent and relatively large increase in the general price level of goods and services. Its opposite is deflation, a process of generally declining prices. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics produces the Consumer Price Index (CPI) yearly, which measures average price changes in…
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Full text Article Inflation

From The Encyclopedia of Aging
The impact of inflation relative to aging can be viewed from 2 perspectives: its effects on individuals, especially its differential impacts on subgroups of older adults; and, more broadly, on society as a whole. Its impact also differs depending on whether its levels are high (e.g., 6% to 7% and…
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Full text Article inflation

From Collins Dictionary of Sociology
( ECONOMICS ) the increase over time in the general level of prices in an economy. Inflation reduces the purchasing power of any unit of money The rate of general inflation is usually measured using an index indicating the annual increase in consumer prices, such as the RETAIL PRICE INDEX . Two main…
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From Dictionary of Human Resources and Personnel Management
a greater increase in the supply of money or credit than in the production of goods and services, resulting in higher prices and a fall in the purchasing power of money □ we have 3% inflation, inflation is running at 3% prices are 3% higher than at the same time last year to take measures to reduce…
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Full text Article inflation

From The New Penguin Business Dictionary
A sustained tendency for the general level of prices to rise. Inflation typically results when the level of spending, or overall demand, in an economy exceeds the ability of the economy to deliver matching output. output gap . Economists generally talk of inflation as having one of three different…
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Full text Article Inflation

From Gale Encyclopedia of U.S. Economic History
Inflation is a continuous rise in the price of goods and services and can be measured using a country's cost-of-living index (a price index of various goods and services). The opposite of inflation is deflation, a steady decline in the level of prices over time. It is important to note that a rise…
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