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Originally Posted by DementedReality
thats fair comment, but you know thats not it works (people will spend on credit to keep up).
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No, they will not spend on credit. When interest rates go up, banks are generally hesitant to start giving out money willy nilly.
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so how is this good for the average joe though? demand going down i fail to see as a good thing. wouldnt that mean less jobs in the manufacturing and supply chain industries? less people working at lower incomes and restaurants, bars and other hospitality industries take a hit. its a cycle that i dont see as being good for anyone.
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It's not good for the average joe. But then again, inflation is really, really bad for the average joe. Nothing eats purchasing power like inflation.
Eventually there comes a point where demand outstrips supply too much. That leads to inflation. Inflation is really, really bad.
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wouldnt it be better to have the problems we see in Calgary right now and not hope to solve it by raising interest rates?
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No. Inflation is absolutely the worst thing to happen to an economy. Consider what inflation is: It means that money is worth less. Deflation almost never occurs, so the economy as a whole is stuck with higher prices all around.
Keep in mind too when high rates of inflation leads to high interest rates: Your bank will
force you to refinance your loans. For many people, that means that they won't be able to afford the mortgage and car anymore. Therefore, they are forced to sell. This leads to an increase in supply and thusly reduces inflation pressure. You'd better hope the gov't doesn't decide to do this, as this is when the **** really hits the fan.
Did I mention that inflation is really, really bad?