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Wiley InterScience | ||||||||||||||
  South African Journal of EconomicsVolume 74 Issue 1, Pages 1 - 5 Published Online: 4 May 2006 Journal compilation © 2009 The Economic Society of South Africa Quarterly Journal of the Economic Society of South Africa
Abstract | References | Full Text: PDF (Size: 76K) | Related Articles | Citation Tracking  SAVING IS NEVER A CONSTRAINT ON INVESTMENT Copyright © 2006 The Author. Journal compilation © 2006 Economic Society of South Africa KEYWORDS E4 • E5 KEYWORDS Saving Abstract
Saving is regarded in mainstream macroeconomics as a volitional relationship, like consumption. This paper argues that this view is incorrect. There is no independent volitional saving function. Since all goods produced are either consumption goods or investment goods, saving, defined as "income not consumed", is the accounting record of investment spending. Changes in the definition of investment produce identical changes in saving, with no accompanying volitional change in saving behavior. "Saving" in economics should properly be termed "abstention" since it does not constitute transitive behavior. To understand saving behavior a Hicksian definition of income must be used, and capital gains and losses must be included in the definition of income. In modern capitalist economies most saving undertaken by agents is non-volitional, and takes the form of permitting the market value of total net wealth to increase. | 
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