1.2 Function of Money 货币职能

教学视频：

课堂练习：

问题讨论：

1. Medium of Exchange or Means of Payments 交易媒介，支付手段

Money serves as a medium of exchange, circulating medium, or means of payment when it passed from hand to hand in exchange for goods and services or in payment of debt. Money as a medium of exchange effectively eliminates the requirements of doublecoincidence of wants and overcomes the difficulty of barter.

当货币从一个人传到另一个人用来交换货物和劳务或偿还债务的时候，就成为了一种交换媒介、流通媒介或支付手段。货币作为交换媒介，有效地消除了需要的双重巧合，克服了物物交换的困难。

2. Unit of Account or Standard of Value  记账单位, 价值尺度

Just as we measure weight interms of pounds or distance in terms of miles, we measure the value of goodsand services in terms of money. Money is the unit of account that we use toquote prices and record debts. We could also refer to it as a standard ofvalue. Using money as a yardstick and quoting all prices in terms of unit ofmoney certainly make it more convenient for trading transaction.

就像我们用磅来衡量重量，用英里来衡量距离一样，我们用金钱来衡量商品和服务的价值。货币是我们用来定价和记录债务的记账单位。我们也可以把它称为价值标准。用货币作为衡量标准，以货币单位报价，当然使交易更方便。

3. Store of Value 贮藏手段

A store of value is used to save purchasing  power from the time when income is received  until the time it is spent. That means money is used to defer the time of exchange of goods andservices.

The effectiveness of money as a store of value depends on two factors: one is the easiness that people can get goods with money when in need of them; the otheris the price level because the value of money is fixed in terms of the price level. Money can function as store of value only when its value is stable as an asset.价值储存是用来节省购买力的，从收到收入到花掉它。这意味着金钱被用来推迟商品和服务的交换时间。

货币作为一种价值储存手段的有效性取决于两个因素:一是人们在需要时能用货币买到商品的方便性;另一个是价格水平，因为货币的价值根据价格水平是固定的。只有当货币作为一种资产的价值稳定时，它才能发挥储存价值的作用。

Checkpoint:

Among the functions of money, which one is the most fundamental?  

Why?