Stock variable
Also called: Stocks · Topic: National Income Accounting: GDP, GVA and Welfare · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 2 "National Income Accounting"; Class 12, Ch 3 "Money and Banking"
Meaning
A stock variable is measured at a particular point of time, not over a period. Examples are capital stock, inventory, money supply and wealth. A stock changes because of flows: investment adds to the capital stock, and depreciation reduces it.
Example
In a tank, the amount of water held at 10 a.m. is a stock. A firm's inventory of unsold goods on 31 March is also a stock.
Don't confuse with
- Flow variable: a flow is measured over a period of time. Income per year and change in inventories during a year are flows.
Related concepts
- Final goods
- Intermediate goods
- Consumer goods
- Consumer durables
- Capital goods
- Double counting
- Flow variable
- Investment
- Gross investment
- Depreciation