Determinants of Growth in an Economy

There are specific determinants that impact the long-run growth of an economy:
Growth of productivity:
This is the ratio of economic outputs to inputs (capital, labor, energy, materials, and services). When the productivity increases the cost of goods is lowered. Lower prices increase the demand for the product or service. An increase in demand can lead to higher revenue.
Demographic changes:
demographic factors influence economic growth by changing the employment to population ratio. Factors include the quantity and quality of available natural resources. Age structure of the population also influences employment and long-run growth.
Labor force participation:
the amount of labor force participation and the size of economic sectors influence economic growth. The labor force participation is the amount of workers available. In countries with high development and industrialization, labor force participation is high because of low birth and death rates.
Inflation and Excessive Growth:
When the economic growth matches the growth of money supply, an economy will continue to grow and thrive. In this case, population growth would increase, but the need for goods and services would also increase. As a result, more jobs would be available and the employment rate would also increase.

However, when economic growth is not balanced, the result can include inflation and excessive growth. Inflation occurs when the general price of goods and services are rising which causes purchasing power to fall if wages don't also rise . A decrease in the demand for goods and services will lead to a decrease in revenue and employment. A high rate of population growth will cause less capital per worker, lower productivity, and lower GDP growth.

Are you ready to Suffer upto death For God's sake? Here is how the disciples of Jesus Christ did it.

1. Matthew
Suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia, Killed by a sword wound.

2. Mark
Died in Alexandria, Egypt , after being dragged by Horses through the streets until he was dead.

3. Luke
Was hanged in Greece as a result of his tremendous Preaching to the lost.

4. John
Faced martyrdom when he was boiled in huge Basin of boiling oil during a wave of persecution In Rome. However, he was miraculously delivered From death.
John was then sentenced to the mines on the prison Island of Patmos. He wrote his prophetic Book of Revelation on Patmos . The apostle John was later freed and returned to serve As Bishop of Edessa in modern Turkey . He died as an old man, the only apostle to die peacefully

5. Peter
He was crucified upside down on an x-shaped cross.
According to church tradition it was because he told his tormentors that he felt unworthy to die In the same way that Jesus Christ had died.

6. James
The leader of the church in Jerusalem , was thrown over a hundred feet down from the southeast pinnacle of the Temple when he refused to deny his faith in Christ. When they discovered that he survived the fall, his
enemies beat James to death with a fuller's club.
* This was the same pinnacle where Satan had taken Jesus during the Temptation.

7. James the Son of Zebedee,
was a fisherman by trade when Jesus Called him to a lifetime of ministry. As a strong leader of the church, James was ultimately beheaded at Jerusalem. The Roman officer who guarded James watched amazed as James defended his faith at his trial. Later, the officer Walked beside James to the place of execution. Overcome by conviction, he declared his new faith to the judge and Knelt beside James to accept beheading as a Christian.

8. Bartholomew
Also known as Nathaniel Was a missionary to Asia. He witnessed for our Lord in present day Turkey. Bartholomew was martyred for his preaching in Armenia where he was flayed to death by a whip.

9. Andrew
Was crucified on an x-shaped cross in Patras, Greece. After being whipped severely by seven soldiers they tied his body to the cross with cords to prolong his agony. His followers reported that, when he was led toward the cross, Andrew saluted it in these words: 'I have long desired and expected this happy hour. The cross has been consecrated by the body of Christ hanging on it.' He continued to preach to his tormentors For two days until he expired.

10. Thomas
Was stabbed with a spear in India during one of his missionary trips to establish the church in the Sub-continent.

11. Jude
Was killed with arrows when he refused to deny his faith in Christ.

12. Matthias
The apostle chosen to replace the traitor Judas Iscariot, was stoned and then beheaded.

13. Paul
Was tortured and then beheaded by the evil Emperor Nero at Rome in A.D. 67. Paul endured a lengthy imprisonment, which allowed him to write his many
epistles to the churches he had formed throughout the Roman Empire. These letters, which taught many of the foundational Doctrines of Christianity, form a large portion of the New Testament.

Perhaps this is a reminder to us that our sufferings here are indeed minor compared to the intense persecution and cold cruelty faced by the apostles and disciples during their times For the sake of the Faith. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: But he that endureth to the end shall be saved..

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are they who mourn,
for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,
for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy.

Blessed are the pure of heart,
for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.

Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
Gospel of St. Matthew 5:3-10
We all should stand up for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and support His ministry in every way we can.

Comperative adavantage

In economics, comparative advantage refers to the ability of a party to produce a particular good or service at a lower marginal and opportunity cost over another. Even if one country is more efficient in the production of all goods (has an absolute advantage in all goods) than another, both countries will still gain by trading with each other. More specifically, countries should import goods if the opportunity cost of importing is lower than the cost of producing them locally.

Specialization according to comparative advantage results in a more efficient allocation of world resources. Larger outputs of both products become available to both nations. The outcome of international specialization and trade is equivalent to a nation having more and/or better resources or discovering improved production techniques.
Determining Comparative Advantage

Imagine that there are two Countries, Country A and Country B, that currently produce their own Sugar and Milk .  Country A uses less time to produce both products, while Country B uses more time to produce both products.  Country A enjoys and absolute advantage, an ability to produce an item with fewer resources. However, the accompanying table shows that  Country A has a comparative advantage in Sugar production, while Country B has a comparative advantage in the production of Milk. The nations can benefit from specialization and trade, which would make the allocation of resources more efficient across both countries.
Country A has a comparative advantage in producing Sugar , while Country B has a comparative advantage in producing Milk. Both nations can benefit from trade.



 

	Production without Trade
	Product	Country A	Country B
	Sugar	5 Hours	24 Hours
	Milk	10 Hours	12 Hours
	Total	15 Hours	36 Hours
	Opportunity cost of production
	Product	Country A	Country B
	Sugar	0.5 Litres	2 Litres
	Milk	2 Kg	0.5 Kg
	Production with Trade
	Country A			Country B
	1 Kg sugar	5 Hours	1 Litre	12 Hours
	1 Kg sugar	5 Hours	1 Litre	12 Hours
	Total	10 Hours		24 Hours

For another example, if the opportunity cost of producing one more unit of coffee in Kenya is 2/3 units of wheat, while the opportunity cost of producing one more unit of coffee in the United States is 1/3 wheat, then the U.S. should produce coffee, while Kenya should produce wheat (assuming Kenya has the lower opportunity cost of producing wheat).
Comparative vs Competitive Advantage

It is important to distinguish between comparative advantage and competitive advantage. Though they sound similar, they are different concepts. Unlike comparative advantage, competitive advantage refers to a distinguishing attribute of a company or a product. It may or may not have anything to do with opportunity cost or efficiency. For example, having good brand recognition or relationships with suppliers is a competitive advantage, but not a comparative advantage. In the context of international trade, we more often discuss comparative advantage.

International Trade

International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories. Trading-partners reap mutual gains when each nation specializes in goods for which it holds a comparative advantage and then engages in trade for other products. In other words, each country should produce goods for which its domestic opportunity costs are lower than the domestic opportunity costs of other countries and exchange those goods for products that have higher domestic opportunity costs compared to other countries .
In International Trade, Countries benefit from producing goods in which they have comparative advantage and trading them for goods in which other countries have the comparative advantage.

In addition to comparative advantage, other reasons for trade include:

• Differences in factor endowments: Countries have different amounts of land, labor, and capital. Saudi Arabia may have a lot of oil, but perhaps not enough lumber. It will thus have to trade for lumber. Japan may be able to produce technological goods of superior quality, but it may lack many natural resources. It may trade with Indonesia for inputs.

• Gains from specialization: Countries may gain economies of scale from specialization, experiencing long run average cost declines as output increases.

• Political benefits: Countries can leverage trade to forge closer cultural and political bonds. International connections also help promote diplomatic (rather than military) solutions to international problems.

• Efficiency gains: Domestic firms will be forced to become more efficient in order to be competitive in the global market.

• Benefits of increased competition: A greater degree of competition leads to lower prices for consumers, greater responsiveness to consumer wants and needs, and a wider variety of products.

In summery, international trade benefits mostly all incumbents and generates substantial value for the global economy.

What is Absolute Advantage?

A country has an absolute advantage in the production of a good when it can produce it more efficiently than other countries.
Relate absolute advantage, productivity, and marginal cost
A country that has an absolute advantage can produce a good at lower marginal cost.
A country with an absolute advantage can sell the good for less than the country that does not have the absolute advantage.

Absolute advantage differs from comparative advantage, which refers to the ability to produce specific goods at a lower opportunity cost.
The capability to produce more of a given product using less of a given resource than a competing entity.

Absolute advantage refers to the ability of a country to produce a good more efficiently that other countries. In other words, a country that has an absolute advantage can produce a good with lower marginal cost (fewer materials, cheaper materials, in less time, with fewer workers, with cheaper workers, etc.). Absolute advantage differs from comparative advantage, which refers to the ability of a country to produce specific goods at a lower opportunity cost.

A country with an absolute advantage can sell the good for less than a country that does not have the absolute advantage.
For example, the Ugandan economy, which is rich in low cost land, has an absolute advantage in agricultural production relative to some other countries.
China and other Asian economies export low-cost manufactured goods, which take advantage of their much lower unit labor costs .
Many consumer electronics are manufactured in China. China can produce such goods more efficiently, which gives it an absolute advantage relative to many countries.

Imagine that Economy A can produce 5 Units per hour with 3 workers. Economy B can produce 10 Units per hour with 3 workers . Assuming that the workers of both economies are paid equally, Economy B has an absolute advantage over Economy A in producing Units per hour. This is because Economy B can produce twice as many Units as Economy B with the same number of workers.
Party B has an absolute advantage in producing Units. It can produce more Units with the same amount of resources than Party A.

If there is no trade, then each country will consume what it produces. Adam Smith said that countries should specialize in the goods and services in which they have an absolute advantage. When countries specialize and trade, they can move beyond their production possibilities frontiers, and are thus able to consume more goods as a result.

Everything happens for a Reason.

" Someday everything will make perfect sense. So for now,laugh at the confusion,smile through the tears and keep reminding yourself that everything happen for a reason." Got this quote from a email had to share. No matter what challenge you face, everything happen for a reason. Never give up.
God always has plan for you.