Moderate recovery took place in 2002, with the GDP growth rate rising to 2.45%. A major short-term problem in first half 2002 was a sharp decline in the stock market, fueled in part by the exposure of uncertain accounting practices in some major corporations. The war in March/April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq shifted resources to military industries and introduced uncertainties about investment and employment in other sectors of the economy. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an a

Interest rate levels are a factor of the supply and demand of credit: an increase in the demand for credit will raise interest rates as seen in the above charts for years 1999 to 2000, while a decrease in the demand for credit will decrease them like in the years 2001-2003. Conversely, an increase in the supply of credit will reduce interest rates while a decrease in the supply of credit will increase them. It has interpreted a rise in interest rates as tighter monetary policy and a fall as easier monetary policy. But interest rates are an imperfect indicator of monetary policy. If easy monetary policy is expected to cause inflation, lenders demand a higher interest rate to compensate for this inflation, and borrowers are willing to pay a higher rate because inflation reduces the value of the dollars they repay. Thus, an increase in expected inflation increases interest rates.

Personal consumption expenditures, accounting for the largest share of GDP, are the main generator of employment in the economy. In 2000, employment generated by consumer spending was 83.2 million, accounting for 62 percent of total employment in the economy. The annual growth rate of employment generated by consumer spending

According to national health expenditure data, prescription drug spending was the fastest growing component of health spending in 2000 and 2001, increasing 17 percent during both years. During 2001, the seventh successive year of double-digit expenditures, prescription drug expenditures were $141 billion. Between 1990 and 2000, per capita spending on prescription drug increased by 206.6 percent. Total global pharmaceutical sales grew by 8% in 2002, to $400.6 billion according to a market research firm specializing in pharmaceuticals based mainly on selected audited retail sales in major global markets

Some topics in this essay:
War II, GlaxcoSmith Kline, FDA FDA, NY Times, Reserve M1, Pharmaceutical Industry, Funds Rate, Predicting Fed, Federal Reserve, Foundation According, pharmaceutical industry, money supply, health care, prescription drug, prescription drugs, funds rate, federal reserve, johnson johnson, monetary policy, medco health, 4036320 4771570 5179030, sales 4036320 4771570, 682170 728180 714950, assets 3991040 4400670, 3991040 4400670 4756120,