Abstract
The purpose of this article is to introduce the notion of a business cycle. For many years the volatility of economic activity has been a subject of detailed analysis. Having searched for a certain consensus, researchers identified four primary phases of the classic business cycle, namely: crisis, depression, revival and prosperity. These phases occur periodically, albeit irregularly. Based on an ex-post analysis, constituent elements of a cycle morphology are researched in order to forecast the occurrence of further cycles. It turns out, however, that it is not enough to be able to predict correctly and stop or even reduce the economic fluctuations.
Keywords: business cycle, economic activity