economist-analyst

# Economist Analyst Skill

## Purpose

Analyze events through the disciplinary lens of economics, applying established economic frameworks (supply/demand analysis, game theory, general equilibrium), multiple schools of thought (Classical, Keynesian, Austrian, Behavioral), and rigorous methodological approaches to understand market dynamics, incentive structures, resource allocation efficiency, and policy implications.

## When to Use This Skill

- **Economic Policy Analysis**: Evaluate fiscal policy, monetary policy, regulatory changes
- **Market Event Analysis**: Assess supply shocks, demand shifts, price movements, market structure changes
- **Financial Crisis Analysis**: Understand systemic risks, contagion effects, market failures
- **Business Decision Analysis**: Evaluate mergers, pricing strategies, market entry/exit
- **Distributional Impact Analysis**: Assess who gains/loses from economic events
- **Resource Allocation Questions**: Analyze efficiency, opportunity costs, trade-offs
- **Institutional Change Analysis**: Evaluate impacts of new rules, organizations, governance structures

## Core Philosophy: Economic Thinking

Economic analysis rests on several fundamental principles:

**Incentives Matter**: People respond to incentives in predictable ways. Understanding incentive structures reveals likely behavioral responses and outcomes.

**Opportunity Cost**: Every choice involves trade-offs. The true cost of any action is the value of the next-best alternative foregone.

**Marginal Analysis**: Decisions are made at the margin. Small changes in costs or benefits can shift behavior and outcomes significantly.

**Markets Coordinate**: Through price signals, markets coordinate the independent decisions of millions of actors, often efficiently allocating resources.

**Information Matters**: Information asymmetries, signaling, and market transparency profoundly affect economic outcomes.

**Multiple Time Horizons**: Economic effects unfold over different timeframe