Your task is to use the knowledge that you have gained in this course (including the additional recommended readings at the end of this file) to demonstrate a thorough understanding of the issues raised in this article.
You will demonstrate your understanding by writing an essay of 2000 words (plus/minus 10%, graphs, table of contents, executive summary, and references are not counted towards the word-limit) on the following topic: “RBA and the threat of deflation”. Please make sure that you write everything in your own words. Your essay will be checked automatically via SafeAssign. Aim for a similarity score of less than 25% to avoid a potential plagiarism investigation. Needless to say, there are serious penalties for both the person who copies and the person who allows his/her assignment to be copied (both would most likely fail this course)

Your essay should address the following four aspects/questions:
1) What role does RBA play in Australia? Discuss the tools available at the disposal of RBA to carry out its functions.
2) Discuss the current economic environment (inflation and interest rates) in Australia, monetary policy employed by the central bank, and effects of those policies on financial markets including asset values and yields.
3) In the article, “Is the deflation bugbear heading down under?” economist Paul Dales is quoted as saying, “an average inflation rate of around 2 per cent or below could mean that many economies, including Australia, are just one recession away from deflation. In other words, the next economic shock might not need to be very large to push inflation below zero”.

Explain the connection between recession and inflation. Why is deflation so dreaded? Comment by drawing on the experiences of other countries that have experienced deflation.

4) In the article, “Is the deflation bugbear heading down under?” leverage dynamics are discussed. Use this as a starting point to explain how leverage matters for the economy.