Limitations of Macroeconomics :

1) Fallacy of Composition

In Macro economic analysis the “fallacy of composition” is involved, i.e. aggregate economic behaviour is the sum total of the economy of individual activities. But what is true of individuals is not necessarily true to the fiscal entirely. For instance, savings are a private virtue but a public vice. If total savings in the economy increases, they may initiate a depression unless they are invested. Again, if an individual depositor withdraws his money from the bank, there is no risk. But if all depositors simultaneously do this, there will be a run on the banks and the banking system will be affected adversely.

2) To Regard the Aggregates as Homogenous

The main defect in macro analysis is that it regards the aggregates as homogenous without caring about their internal composition and structure. The average wage in a nation is the sum total of wages in all professions, i.e. wages of clerks, typists, teachers, nurses etc. But the volume of aggregate employment depends on the relative structure of wages rather than on the average wage. If, for instance, wages of nurses increase but of typist rises much aggregate employment would increase.

3) Aggregate Variables may not be Important Necessarily

The aggregate variables which form the economic system may not be of much significance. For instance, the national income of a country is the total of all individual income. A hike in national income does not mean that individual incomes have risen. The increase in national income might be the result of the increase in the incomes of a few rich people in the nation. Thus a rise in the national income of this type has little significance from the point of view of the community.

4) Indiscriminate Use of Macro Economics Misleading

An indiscriminate and uncritical use of macro economics in analysing the complexities of the real world can frequently be misleading. For instance, if the policy measures needed to achieve and maintain full employment in the economy are applied to structural redundancy in individual firms and industries, they become irrelevant. Likewise, measures aimed at controlling general prices cannot be applied with much advantage for controlling prices of individual products.

5) Statistical and Conceptual Difficulties

The measurement of macro economics concepts involves a number of statistical and conceptual complexities. These problems relate to the aggregation of micro economic variables. If individual units are almost similar, aggregation does not present much difficulty. But if micro economic variables relate to dissimilar individual units, their aggregation into one aggregation into one macro economic variable may be incorrect and hazardous.