Includes index.

Contents: First things first: Money: what and why -- Banking in the United States-some basics -- A Primer on the federal reserve -- Taking a reading on the economy -- The Special language of financial markets -- The U.S. banking and finance industry: Banking institutions-past and present -- The Structure of banking institutions -- Assets and liabilities of depository institutions -- Managing bank assets and liabilities -- The Federal reserve system: Growth and governance of the federal reserve system -- Factors supplying and absorbing reserves -- Can the federal reserve control the money supply? -- What determines the GNP, interest rates, and prices?: Total expenditures in the economy -- How much will be produced-the simplest case -- Money and interest rates -- The Effect of prices on aggregate demand and the amount produced -- How prices are determined -- The Economy self-correcting? -- What causes inflation? -- More on inflation: the quantity theory -- Economic policy -- The Ongoing economic policy debate -- Financial flows and security markets: Flows-of-funds analysis -- Financial markets in the United States -- The Structure of U.S. interest rates -- International finance: International banking and financial markets -- International dollar flows and exchange rates -- The International monetary system.