...Deep Economic Moat A company that has a deep economic moat is Google Inc. According to comScore Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, Google blew away its U.S. competition with 67.3% of searches conducted in August 2014. Google’s closest U.S. competitors are Microsoft with only 19.4% of the market share followed by Yahoo with 10%. Google has a staggering three times higher market share than Microsoft. According to comScore in December 2012, Google had 114.7 billion searches and its closest worldwide competitor, Baidu, only had 14.5 billion searches. That comes just shy of having 8 times more searches. It owns more market share than all of its competitors combined. Google is one of the world’s most established brand names. It has become synonymous with conducting an online search; but how has Google made it possible to establish its economic moat? First, Google has economies of scale, and managed to established a great market power with clever business tactics by buying certain firms in order to take advantage of high-traffic specialty segments, like travel, jobs, health, real estate and Maps, to name a few. For example, Google bought the online travel firm ITA Software. This strategic move allows a simple travel search to display a large Google results box underneath the top sponsored links. With this acquisition, Google entered the travel industry and established a strong distribution network, its brand name alone made it impossible for a newcomer to enter the...
Words: 571 - Pages: 3
...Big Data Analytics (IB9CS) Mining, processing, analysing, and visualising large data sets. Week 6 Measuring happiness Suzy Moat Tobias Preis Suzy.Moat@wbs.ac.uk Tobias.Preis@wbs.ac.uk What we’ve covered Measuring Predicting What we’ve covered Measuring Economics Health Predicting What we’ve covered Measuring Predicting Economics Economics Health Crime What we’ve covered Measuring Predicting Economics Economics Health Crime Happiness Social networks http://www.ted.com/talks/nicholas_christakis_the_hidden_influence_of_social_networks.html Twitter and happiness Positive affect Negative affect Golder and Macy (2011, Science) Twitter and happiness Positive affect Negative affect Golder and Macy (2011, Science) Facebook and happiness Own updates % positive words % negative words Kramer et al. (2014, PNAS) Negativity reduced Positivity reduced News feed Facebook and happiness Own updates More positive % positive words % negative words More negative Kramer et al. (2014, PNAS) Negativity reduced Positivity reduced News feed Facebook and happiness Own updates % positive words % negative words Kramer et al. (2014, PNAS) Negativity reduced Positivity reduced News feed Facebook and happiness Own updates % positive words % negative words Kramer et al. (2014, PNAS) Negativity reduced Positivity ...
Words: 331 - Pages: 2
...Checkpoint A/New House Germaine Dancer 1/13/12 XECO 212 Annie Moats My husband and I are looking to buy a bigger house this year or early next year. What we are doing is cutting back on what we are spending on things. So principle 1: People Face Trade-offs. We are not taking a trip this year or spending unnecessary money. We are just spending what we need like food, things like for the baby and the other kids. We have started to take our lunch to work with instead of buying lunch at $10.00 a day. We have been cooking dinner and breakfast almost every day. That saves money to. I’m in school and that is taking up a lot of my extra money, but the payoff is going to be good. Another principle 6: Markets Are Usually a Good Way to Organize Economic Activity. The market economy is an economy that allocates resources through the decentralized decisions of many firms and households as they interact in markets for goods and services. I really like this one Firm decide whom to hire and what to make. Households decide which firms to work for and what to buy with their incomes. These firms and households interact in the marketplace, where prices and self interest guide their decisions. They are saying as a household we decide what we buy and how much we are will to pay. Because if something is too high we want buy it and the companies lost out. But if the prices are right we will buy it all the time. Just like when you buy a house, if the house is too much in this day of age the house...
Words: 373 - Pages: 2
...ANALYSIS6 MCD got off to a strong start in 2010 with a solid recovery in U.S. comparable sales growth, sustained momentum in international sales growth, and impressive operating margin gains in its first quarter. Analyst remain confident that MCD’s competitive advantages, including a universally known brand and unparalleled scale advantages, position the firm to thrive under any economic environment. After posting flattish U.S. comparable sales in January and February, MCD came back strong in March with 4.2% growth, thanks to a general increase in consumer optimism as well as menu innovations such as frappes, value-priced beverages, and the breakfast dollar menu. Analysts continue to anticipate low- to mid-single-digit comparable sales growth in the U.S. during 2010. There were also several reasons for optimism in Europe, as MCD continued to outperform other quick-service restaurant chains across the Continent, including key markets such as France, Russia, and the United Kingdom. Asia/Pacific, Middle East, and Africa results were also encouraging, including further improvement in China comparable sales trends. There is no change to analysts’ full-year expectations of mid-single-digit comparable sales growth in MCD’s international segments. The 220-basis-point increase in consolidated operating margins to 29.8% was the highlight of the quarter, very likely due to favorable food and paper commodity prices. Although commodity prices are expected to rise during the second half...
Words: 362 - Pages: 2
...of domestic firms is influenced by international economic performance. The chapter’s main focus however is on aspects of the U. S. economy that affect security returns, including fiscal and monetary policy. In addition, a brief presentation of the determinants of interest rates is covered. The chapter concludes with a discussion of industry analysis that includes classifications of industries, information sources, the industrial life cycle and a Porter framework that can be used to analyze industry competition. LEARNING OBJECTIVES Upon reading this chapter, you should have a basic understanding of some of the macroeconomic factors that affect security prices. That is, how fiscal and monetary policy affect interest rates and security prices. And some industry groups are more affected by macroeconomic factors than others and the characteristics of an industry that affect its competitiveness. CHAPTER OUTLINE The top-down approach to fundamental analysis begins with analyzing the economy. Expected economic performance will influence the choice of industry and the specific firm chosen as an investment. 1. The Global Economy A top-down analysis of a company begins with an examination of global economic prospects. Risk Factors: Political risk: This affects the economic environment that determines the industry performance. Exchange-rate risk. Exchange-rate risk has several elements that are important to global economic...
Words: 4152 - Pages: 17
...DEVELOP AND GROW SOCIAL INNOVATION DANGER AND OPPORTUNITY CRISIS AND THE NEW SOCIAL ECONOMY Robin Murray 2 TITLE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This essay was written while the author was a Visiting Fellow at NESTA and forms part of a series of publications on methods of social innovation led by the Young Foundation with the support of NESTA. I would like to thank NESTA for their support, and in particular Dr Michael Harris, as well as my colleagues at the Young Foundation, Julie Caulier-Grice and Geoff Mulgan, all of whom have given valuable comments on the text. Published September 2009 CONTENTS 1 CONTENTS 1. The argument 2 5 9 23 39 52 54 55 2. The context of crisis 3. The emerging economic landscape 4. Can the new social economy respond? 5. Social innovation and the crisis of policy Bibliography Weblinks Endnotes 2 DANGER AND OPPORTUNITY CRISIS AND THE NEW SOCIAL ECONOMY 1 THE ARGUMENT The rise of the new social economy This pamphlet argues that the early years of the 21st century are witnessing the emergence of a new kind of economy that has profound implications for the future of public services as well as for the daily life of citizens. This emerging economy can be seen in many fields, including the environment, care, education, welfare, food and energy. It combines some old elements and many new ones. I describe it as a ‘social economy’ because it melds features which are very different from economies...
Words: 22113 - Pages: 89
...MRC 1513 ECONOMIC ANALYSIS WORKSHOP 1A Question 1: Although managerial economics is based primarily on microeconomics, explain why it is also important for managers to understand macroeconomics. Answer: Felda Technoplant Sdn Bhd is a subsidiary of Felda Holdings Berhad and was established on 22 June 2005 as a management agency for FELDA settler plantations. Among its main activities is replanting estates, managing immature and mature plantations as well as providing oil palm planting materials for estate replanting purposes. Almost 90% of the replanting area is planted with oil palm and the remaining planted with rubber. Thus we are subject to risks inherent to the plantation industry. These include damage from pests, outbreak of diseases such as ganoderma, fire or natural disasters, unscheduled interruption in palm oil milling and rubber tapping operation, climate condition, downturns in the global, regional and national economies, changes in law and tax regulations affecting palm oil and rubber and the competitive needs of labour with other industry. Movement of commodity price in local and international market influence the price of Fresh Fruit Bunch (FFB) and rubber. This will affect managerial decision whether continuing the normal field operations or take certain mitigation action focusing only to harvesting work while other work activities such weeding and fertilizing being stop until the operational cost becomes more viable. As an example, in 2008 the FFB selling...
Words: 386 - Pages: 2
...Set 105 Environmental Scanning/Industry Analysis – 1 1. What external environmental variables should be scanned? In conducting an external environmental scan, focus should be drawn to two environmental variables: • Societal environment (macro-environment) – This is the general environment in which the business organization operates. It is characterized by those variables on which the business has no control. It does not directly touch on the short run activities of the firm but can, and often do influence its long-run decisions. • Task environment (micro-environment) – This is the industry within which the business organization operates. This environment is characterized by various players and stakeholders who affect a business enterprise, and are also affected by it. 2. According to Porter, what determines the level of competitive intensity in an industry? According to Porter, the level of competitive intensity is determined by 5 basic competitive forces namely: (1) Threat of new entrants to a market (2) Bargaining power of suppliers (3) Bargaining power of customers or buyers (4) Threat of substitute products and (5) Degree of competitive rivalry 3. What should be scanned in the task environment? There should be an analysis of relevant elements in the task environment such as: (1) Competitors (2) Suppliers (3) Regulators (4) Strategic Partners (5) Labor and (6) Customers. 4. Discuss how a development in a corporation’s societal environment can...
Words: 269 - Pages: 2
...An Assignment on Money Market and Labour Market in context of Bangladesh Course Instructor: Abdul Jalil Chowdhury SUBMITTED BY: Zinat Mahal Roll No.: 1328 Departmental of Training for BCS (Economic) cadre Officers NAPD, Ministry of Planning, Nilkhet, Dhaka-1205 Introduction Bangladesh is a developing country in where money market and labour market are two of the most important issues of economics that determine long run development of a country. The GDP and infrastructural development of a country depend largely on the successful and efficient money market and labour market. Financial sector is considered to be playing a crucial role in facilitating efficient allocation of resources and improving productivity of investment. Although the direct effect of financial institutions on the real economy is less clear, the indirect impact of financial market is essentially critical (Herring et al., 1991). Mobilization of savings, managing risks and facilitating exchange of goods and services are the functions of financial sector that connect households, firms and governments for their own purposes. An efficient financial system can be of great use for the poor through boosting the growth of the economy and reducing the financial risks by creating an enabling environment to ensure easy access to financial services for all. Money Market A segment of the financial market in which financial instruments with high liquidity and very short maturities are traded...
Words: 773 - Pages: 4
...use of feedback, decision making and human relation etc. Miller (1983) defines entrepreneurship as a multidimensional concept encompassing a company’s action relating to innovation and risk taking and proactive measures.Innovation and risk-taking has an important place in entrepreneurship. Schumpeter (1994) described role of entrepreneurship as tendency of company to engage in and support new ideas, novelty, and experimentation that may result in new products, services. Risk taking describes the nature of entrepreneur. A.H. Cole has explained entrepreneurship as, “the purposeful activity of an individual or group of associated individuals, undertaken to initiate, maintain, or earn profit by production and distribution of economic goods and services. According to Heggins, “Entrepreneurship is meant the function of seeking investment and production opportunity, organize an enterprise to undertake a new production process, raising capital, hiring...
Words: 307 - Pages: 2
...THE COST OF CAPITAL, CORPORATION FINANCE AND THE OF INVESTMIENT In the business world we make investment for two main reasons or either of them that can be for the maximization of our profite from a business or it can be for the maximaization of the market value of the assets. Businesses generally aquire the assets if the perceives that the particular asset can help in increasing the profit of the organisation. According to the theory the acquisition of the asset can help to increase the profit only if the returns arising due to that asset are more than the interest costs arising due to that asset. On the individual level when we are cosidering the purchase of any asset we should also consider the risk factor associated with that asset. Profit maximization and value maximization they both have more or less same meanings and implications. But if the case is of uncertainity then the profit maximization has no meanings, it remains meaningless for the investors. When the situation is uncertain then in that case the market value maximization becomes the basis for the theory of investment, if this notion is kept in mind then every time when we are going to make a decision to invest or not we should simply keep one thing in our mind that can be the basis of the decision, that is if we aquire the particular asset will it help to increase the value of the firm’s share? If in response of this question we comes on this point that yes it will result in increase in the value of the firm’s...
Words: 300 - Pages: 2
...TEPAV – Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey The first company that we visited in Ankara was the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey. There they presented to us the Turkish economic background, the actual economic position regarding European Union and Middle East and what are their challenges to keep the long-term competitiveness. Turkey is strategically located between Europe and Middle East and this advantage, after the policy reforms, made the country boost their economy by attracting companies that operates in both markets. The country is so well geographically located that we in a 3 hours flight you have an economic potential of 8,7 Trillions of dollars. The ground for this economic boom was the first generation reforms starting in 1980 with Price reforms and Trade and Financial liberalization. After that in 2001 they had the Banking reform, Privatized state owned companies, created Independent authorities to regulate the markets and they also adopted Fiscal and Monetary discipline. Nowadays, they are trying to move from an Efficiency-driven economy to an Innovation-driven economy, which means that they need to not only build or make goods in the country but also aggregate value to the goods produced. Investing in education is the only and long way to shift the economy from large scale transformation to high-tech. On the other hand, Turkey has a current account deficit and it is at historic high, it corresponds as 10% of GDP. The majority of the...
Words: 300 - Pages: 2
...Monetary Policy Design in a DSGE Model 1. A simple model 1.1 Households The utility function of a representative household is ∞ ⎛ ξ C1−σ L1+η ⎞ Et ∑ β s ⎜ t + s t + s − t + s ⎟ 1+η ⎠ s =0 ⎝ 1−σ (1) The dynamics of the demand shock is ζ t = ζ t −1 + eζ ,t , where ξt = eζ . The consumption is t θ −1 ⎡ 1 ⎤ θ −1 composed of lots of goods. It is composed in a CES function Ct = ⎢ ∫ Ct (i ) θ di ⎥ . The i =0 ⎣ ⎦ 1 1−θ 1−θ consumer price index is P = ⎡ ∫ P (i ) di ⎤ . Then the demand function of each good is t t ⎢ i =0 ⎥ ⎣ ⎦ 1 θ ⎡ P (i ) ⎤ Ct (i ) = ⎢ t ⎥ Ct ⎣ Pt ⎦ The budget constraint is −θ PCt + Bt = Wt Lt + Π t + Rt −1 Bt −1 t The first order condition for Ct , Lt , and Bt are Ct−σ = λt Pt Lη = λtWt t λt = Rt λt +1|t After some calculation, we have the Euler equation and labor supply equation ξt +1Ct−+σ / Pt +1 1 β Rt Et =1 −σ ξt Ct / Pt ξt Ct−σ Pt 1.2 Firms (2) = Lη t Wt (3) Assume there is a type of price stickiness in the economy, that each firm has a probability φ that cannot change its price, and fixed the level as the last time. And it has a probability 1 − φ that can re-optimal its price. The problem of a firm which can re-optimal its price in time t is 1 Et ∑ (βφ ) s Λ t + s [ Pt* (i )Yt (i ) − Wt Lt (i )] s =0 ∞ ⎡ Pt * ⎤ s.t.Yt + s (i ) = ⎢ ⎥ Ct and Yt (i ) = At Lt (i ) ⎣ Pt + s ⎦ The dynamics of the technology shock is at = ρ a at −1 + ea ,t , where at = ln( At ) . The first order condition is ...
Words: 1198 - Pages: 5
...Financial Concepts in a Changing Business Michael Magons FIN/571 April 9, 2012 Beatrice Jones Financial Concepts in a Changing Business Guillermo Navalles’s furniture store is facing some new competition and has choices to make (University of Phoenix, 2012). These choices include competing with the new firm, absorbing or being absorbed by other firms, or changing from mainly manufacturing to distribution. Changing technologies and changes in the labor force influence decisions Guillermo needs to make to improve his business. Financial concepts associated with these types of changes are discussed here. Guillermo is compelled to make decisions about how he runs his company because of his own financial self-interest (Emery, Finnerty, & Stowe, 2007). The opportunity cost for Guillermo’s firm has changed since the arrival of new competition, and he must decide how to change his variable costs to maintain the prosperity of his company. His options include altering labor costs through automation or changing from a manufacturer to a distributor with more outsourcing (University of Phoenix, 2012). He is also displaying the behavioral principle because he is considering either copying the competition or adopting a business model that works for other furniture firms. Copying the behavior of another could work for Guillermo. The comparative advantage principle can also work with Guillermo because he can offer a patented coating that is flame retardant and...
Words: 468 - Pages: 2
...A Short History of Economic Thought Hans-Walter Lorenz FSU Jena Winter 2012/13 Hans-Walter Lorenz (FSU Jena) A Short History of Economic Thought Winter 2012/13 1 / 93 Outline, Relevance, and Contents Outline, Relevance, and Contents Outline Very brief overview of a few dominant authors (starting around 1700 and ending in our times) Due to time restrictions: selection is to some extent arbitrary Emphasis on authors with a major influence on the development of economics Note: Empty entries are open for students’ presentations Hans-Walter Lorenz (FSU Jena) A Short History of Economic Thought Winter 2012/13 2 / 93 Outline, Relevance, and Contents Outline, Relevance, and Contents Relevance: Reasons for concentrating on the history of thought General historic interest (assumed!) Developing a sense for connections between political/technical history and the emergence of new economic ideas Many recently discussed topics in economics have ancestors in previous decades and centuries; many ‘brand-new’ approaches actually possess long beards (however often forgotten). Hans-Walter Lorenz (FSU Jena) A Short History of Economic Thought Winter 2012/13 3 / 93 Outline, Relevance, and Contents Outline, Relevance, and Contents Contents The Classics – Quesnay, Smith, Ricardo, Say, Malthus, Marx The Neoclassics – Marshall, Walras, Menger, Gossen The Keynesian Revolution The Neoclassical Synthesis and the New Classical School Strategic...
Words: 6274 - Pages: 26
