I. The Evolution of the British Economy since the War
The evolution of the British economy since WWII falls into three periods
(1) Steady development in the 50s and 60s: The British economy in this period is characterized by slow but steady growth, low unemployment and great material prosperity with rising standards of consumption.
(2) Economic recession经济滞胀 in the 70s: In the 1970s among the developed countries, Britain maintained the lowest growth rate最低经济增长率 and the highest inflation rate最高的通货膨胀率, and the high record of trade deficits最高的贸易赤字纪录.
(3) Economic recovery经济复苏 in the 80s: An outstanding feature of the economic recovery in the 80s was its length, lasting seven years. Another was the improved financial position of the government政府金融地位最高, with stronger current account of the balance of payments国际收支大大盈余.
★Measures taken by Mrs. Thatcher's government to improve the economy
Mrs. Thatcher's government took numerous measures to improve the efficiency of the economy during the past decade, using both macroeconomic and microeconomic policies.
(1) Macroeconomic measures were directed towards bringing down the rate of inflation and achieving price stability.
(2) Microeconomic policies were aimed at working with the grain of market forces by encouraging enterprise, efficiency and flexibility.