...and will discuss the consequences of their behaviour. As well, I will try to examine the statement "being an oligopolist is not easy", and whether it is true or whether the truth lies in between. Aspects of Market Structure The four types of market structure are listed in the drawing below: Characteristics of an oligopoly Definition Oligopoly is a type of imperfect competition with a market structure, that has only a small group of sellers which offers similar or even identical products. Oligopolist, Oligopoly An oligopoly is a market form in which a market is dominated by a small number of sellers (oligopolists). There are few participants in this type of market and each oligopolist is aware of the actions of the others. Oligopolistic markets are characterised by interactivity. The decisions of one firm influence and are influenced by the decisions of other firms. The question is how we can describe the market situation of an Oligopolist. If we compare it to the other possibilities of a market situation such as a competitive market or a monopolistic market, it is neither of them. The typical characteristics of an oligopoly is that each of the market players offer a product similar or identical to the others in a competitive market. This fact distinguishes the market structure from a monopolistic competition where the firms are similar but not identical. On the other side, there exists more than one player in this kind of market what makes...
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...most competitive market structure is pure or perfect competition, which is as competitive as possible. As previously mentioned, market structures are models that summarize how certain markets are organized and behave. For each market structure we have a set of assumptions or characteristics that tell us what kind of industries the model will explain. Only industries that meet the assumptions will behave in the way the model predicts. The assumptions of perfect competition are: Many buyers and sellers: There are so many buyers and sellers in perfect competition that no one of them has any influence whatsoever on the market. The number of consumers and producers is so great that any one of them is like a cup of water in the ocean – their presence or absence makes no difference at all to the market. Identical or homogenous product: Every producer in the market makes exactly the same product – consumers are not able to distinguish between the output of one firm and the output of another. There are no labels, brands or any other distinguishing features used to make a product look distinct. Excellent information: Both buyers and sellers in this market have good information about the product, especially the fact that there are many other producers all making the same product. Relatively free entry and exit: Firms are able to move resources in and out of this market relatively easily with little expense. This makes firms especially quick...
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...Course: - Edexcel HND in Business Module: - Business Environment Assignment Prepared by: Lecturer: Mr Term: Sepember-December2012 Course Start date: September2012 (Birmingham Central Campus) Introduction: This Assignment is about Business Environment and I have to complete the flowing tasks for the purpose of the assignment: Task 1 1. Types of Business Organisations, their purposes: There are three main types of Organisation in UK A) Private sector organisations. B) Public sector organisations. C) Voluntary sector organisations. The main types of Business organisation in the Private Sector is: The Sole trader: A sole trader is a business that is owned by one person. It may have one or more employees. It is the most common form of ownership in the UK. (e.g. Window cleaning, and Plumbing, etc.). Nowadays lots of people are setting up their own businesses by creating small web-based companies working from home. The Partnership: In a partnership, partners are personally liable for the debts of the business, although partners in a limited partnership (not to be confused with a limited liability partnership) who play no part in the management of the business, may have a limit on their liability set out in the Partnership Deed.. Companies: are owned by shareholders that each contributes a stock of money into a central pool. This pool of...
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...“This document is attributed to Donald N. Stengel” Attributed to Donald N. Stengal Saylor URL: http://www.saylor.org/books/ Saylor.org 1 Chapter 1 Introduction to Managerial Economics What Is Managerial Economics? One standard definition for economics is the study of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. A second definition is the study of choice related to the allocation of scarce resources. The first definition indicates that economics includes any business, nonprofit organization, or administrative unit. The second definition establishes that economics is at the core of what managers of these organizations do. This book presents economic concepts and principles from the perspective of “managerial economics,” which is a subfield of economics that places special emphasis on the choice aspect in the second definition. The purpose of managerial economics is to provide economic terminology and reasoning for the improvement of managerial decisions. Most readers will be familiar with two different conceptual approaches to the study of economics: microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics studies phenomena related to goods and services from the perspective of individual decisionmaking entities—that is, households and businesses. Macroeconomics approaches the same phenomena at an aggregate level, for...
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...Distinguish between the terms "rates" and "price" as relates to transportation? ANS: A rate, appropriate to the regulation of transportation, refers to the amount that can be found in a Rate Tariff Book as payment to a carrier for performing a given transportation service, and is the lawful charge for the service. Under deregulation, price is a more appropriate term applying to what transportation carriers charge for their services; price representing the value of services performed based on prevailing market forces. 2. The theory of contestable markets is offered to identify the relevant market structure for the deregulated transportation environment. Explain the theory. ANS: Explanation is offered for the case of airline deregulation. For deregulation to work, its market structure must closely resemble pure competition. The airline industry appeared to be oligopolistic and would prevent new entrants. Some consensus did exist that the airline industry could perform competitively. This provides the rationale for the theory, which proposes that potential competition be substituted for the active participation of many sellers. For the theory to work, four conditions have to be met: no barrier to market entry, no economics of scale, consumers would be willing to switch quickly among carriers, and existing carriers had to be prevented from responding to new entrants' lower prices. 3. Define and discuss Cost of Service Pricing. ANS: ...
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...Chapter 11 Price-Searcher Markets with High Entry Barriers Questions 1 through 10 are a suggested chapter quiz. 1. When economists talk about a barrier to entry, they are referring to a. a factor that makes it difficult for potential competitors to enter a market. b. the opportunity cost of equity capital that is incurred by a firm producing at minimum total cost. c. the downward-sloping portion of the long-run average total cost curve. d. the declining output experienced as additional units of a variable input are used with a given amount of a fixed input. 2. A monopolist will maximize profits by a. setting the price at the level that will maximize per-unit profit. b. producing the output where marginal revenue equals total cost and charging a price along the demand curve. c. selling at the price on the demand curve at the output rate where marginal revenue equals marginal cost. d. producing at the output rate where price equals marginal cost. 3. Which one of the following is the best description of a monopolist? a. a firm that produces a single product b. a firm that is the sole producer of a narrowly defined product class, such as yellow, grade-A butter produced in Jackson County, Wisconsin c. a firm that is the sole producer of a product for which there are no good substitutes in a market with high barriers to entry d. a firm that is large relative to...
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...------------------------------------------------- Monopoly From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This article is about the economic term. For the board game, see Monopoly (game). For other uses, seeMonopoly (disambiguation). "I Like a Little Competition"—J. P. Morgan by Art Young. Cartoon relating to the answer J. P. Morgan gave when asked whether he disliked competition at the Pujo Committee.[1] A monopoly (from Greek monos μόνος (alone or single) + polein πωλεῖν (to sell)) exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity (this contrasts with a monopsony which relates to a single entity's control of a market to purchase a good or service, and with oligopoly which consists of a few entities dominating an industry).[2]Monopolies are thus characterized by a lack of economic competition to produce the good or service and a lack of viable substitute goods.[3] The verb "monopolise" refers to the process by which a company gains the ability to raise prices or exclude competitors. In economics, a monopoly is a single seller. In law, a monopoly is a business entity that has significant market power, that is, the power to charge high prices.[4] Although monopolies may be big businesses, size is not a characteristic of a monopoly. A small business may still have the power to raise prices in a small industry (or market).[4] A monopoly is distinguished from a monopsony, in which there is only one buyer of a product or service; a monopoly may also have monopsony control...
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...Evolution of the Modern Firm Chapter Contents 1) Introduction 2) The World in 1840 • Doing Business in 1840 • Conditions of Business in 1840: Life Without a Modern Infrastructure Example 1.1: The Emergence of Chicago 3) The World in 1910 • Doing Business in 1910 Example 1.2: Responding to the Business Environment: The Case of American Whaling • Business Conditions in 1910: A "Modern" Infrastructure Example 1.3: Evolution of the Steel Industry 4) The World Today • Doing Business Today • The Infrastructure Today Example 1.4: Economic Gyrations and Traffic Gridlock in Thailand 5) Three Different Worlds: Consistent Principles, Changing Conditions, and Adaptive Strategies Example 1.5: Infrastructure and Emerging Markets: The Russian Privatization Program Example 1.6: Building National Infrastructure: The Transcontinental Railroad 6) Chapter Summary 7) Questions Chapter Summary This chapter analyses the business environment in three different time periods: 1840, 1910 and the present. It looks at the business infrastructure, market conditions, the size and scope of a firm’s activities and a firm’s response to changes. This historical perspective shows that all successful businesses have used similar principles to adapt to widely varying business conditions in order to succeed. Businesses in the period before 1840 were small and operated in localized markets. The size of a business...
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...part of this work, please send a request with complete information to the Copyright Clearance Center Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; telephone: 978-750-8400; fax: 978-750-4470; Internet: www.copyright.com. All other queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher, The World Bank Group, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2422; e-mail: pubrights@worldbank.org. About the Investment Climate Advisory Services of the World Bank Group The Investment Climate Advisory Services (IC) of the World Bank Group helps governments implement reforms to improve their business environment, and encourage and retain investment, thus fostering competitive markets, growth and job creation. Funding is provided by the World Bank Group (International Finance Corporation–IFC, the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency– MIGA, and the World Bank) and over 15 donor...
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...Answers to in-text Questions in Economics (5th edition) Chapter 1 Page 4 ( Could production and consumption take place without money? If you think they could, give examples. Yes. People could produce things for their own consumption. For example, people could grow vegetables in their garden or allotment; they could do their own painting and decorating. Alternatively people could engage in barter: they could produce things and then swap them for goods that other people had produced. ( Before reading on, how would you define scarcity? Must goods be at least temporarily unattainable to be scarce? See page 2 of text for a definition of scarcity. Goods need not be unattainable to be scarce. Because people’s incomes are limited, they cannot have everything they want from shops, even though the shops are stocked full. If all items in shops were free, the shelves would soon be emptied! ( If we would all like more money, why does the government not print a lot more? Could it not thereby solve the problem of scarcity ‘at a stroke’? The problem of scarcity is one of a lack of production. Simply printing more money without producing more goods and services will merely lead to inflation. To the extent that firms cannot meet the extra demand (i.e. the extra consumer expenditure) by extra production, they will respond by putting up their prices. Without extra production, consumers will end up unable to buy any more than previously...
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...This page intentionally left blank Managerial Economics Managerial economics, meaning the application of economic methods in the managerial decision-making process, is a fundamental part of any business or management course. This textbook covers all the main aspects of managerial economics: the theory of the firm; demand theory and estimation; production and cost theory and estimation; market structure and pricing; game theory; investment analysis and government policy. It includes numerous and extensive case studies, as well as review questions and problem-solving sections at the end of each chapter. Nick Wilkinson adopts a user-friendly problem-solving approach which takes the reader in gradual steps from simple problems through increasingly difficult material to complex case studies, providing an understanding of how the relevant principles can be applied to real-life situations involving managerial decision-making. This book will be invaluable to business and economics students at both undergraduate and graduate levels who have a basic training in calculus and quantitative methods. N I C K W I L K I N S O N is Associate Professor in Economics at Richmond, The American International University in London. He has taught business and economics in various international institutions in the UK and USA, as well as working in business management in both countries. Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, São Paulo Cambridge...
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...Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS®), pp. i–iii and 1–9, (CFA Institute, 4.* 2005) A. Preface: Background of the GIPS Standards B. I. Introduction C. II.0. Provisions of the Global Investment Performance Standards – Fundamentals of Compliance * 5. The Corporate Governance of Listed Companies: A Manual for Investors (CFA Institute, 2005) Learning Outcomes 1. “Code of Ethics and Standards of Professional Conduct” The Code of Ethics establishes the framework for ethical decision making in the investment profession. The candidate should be able to state the six components of the Code of Ethics. The Standards of Professional Conduct are organized into seven standards: I. Professionalism II. Integrity of Capital Markets III. Duties to Clients and Prospective Clients IV. Duties to Employers V. Investment Analysis, Recommendations, and Action VI. Conflicts of Interest VII. Responsibilities as a CFA Institute Member or CFA Candidate Each standard contains multiple provisions for which the candidate is responsible. The candidate should be able to identify the ethical responsibilities required by the Code and Standards. * Readings...
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...Journal of Economic Literature Vol. XLV (March 2007), pp. 83–126 A Flat World, a Level Playing Field, a Small World After All, or None of the Above? A Review of Thomas L. Friedman’s The World is Flat EDWARD E. LEAMER∗ Geography, flat or not, creates special relationships between buyers and sellers who reside in the same neighborhoods, but Friedman turns this metaphor inside-out by using The World is Flat to warn us of the perils of a relationship-free world in which every economic transaction is contested globally. In his “flat” world, your wages are set in Shanghai. In fact, most of the footloose relationship-free jobs in apparel and footwear and consumer electronics departed the United States several decades ago, and few U.S. workers today feel the force of Chinese and Indian competition, notwithstanding the alarming anecdotes about the outsourcing of intellectual services. Of course, standardization, mechanization, and computerization all work to increase the number of footloose tasks, but innovation and education work in the opposite direction, creating relationship-based activities—like the writing of this review. It may only be personal conceit, but I imagine there is a reason why the Journal of Economic Literature asked me to do this review. 1. Prologue hen the Journal of Economic Literature asked me to write a review of The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century (Farrar, Straus, and Giroux 2005) by Thomas Friedman, I responded with enthusiasm,...
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...2006 A & C Black Publishers Ltd 38 Soho Square, London W1D 3HB © P. H. Collin 2003 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the permission of the publishers A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library eISBN-13: 978-1-4081-0221-3 Text Production and Proofreading Heather Bateman, Katy McAdam A & C Black uses paper produced with elemental chlorine-free pulp, harvested from managed sustainable forests. Text typeset by A & C Black Printed in Italy by Legoprint Preface Economics is the basis of our daily lives, even if we do not always realise it. Whether it is an explanation of how firms work, or people vote, or customers buy, or governments subsidise, economists have examined evidence and produced theories which can be checked against practice. This book aims to cover the main aspects of the study of economics which students will need to learn when studying for examinations at various levels. The book will also be useful for the general reader who comes across these terms in the financial pages of newspapers as well as in specialist magazines. The dictionary gives succinct explanations of the 3,000 most frequently found terms. It also covers the many abbreviations which are often used in writing on economic subjects. Entries are also given for prominent economists, from Jeremy Bentham to John Rawls, with short biographies and references to their theoretical works. Where necessary...
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...Chapter 2: How Airline Markets Work...Or Do They? Regulatory Reform in the Airline Industry Severin Borenstein and Nancy L. Rose October 2008 Severin Borenstein is E.T. Grether Professor of Business Administration and Public Policy at the Haas School of Business, U.C. Berkeley (www.haas.berkeley.edu), Director of the University of California Energy Institute (www.ucei.org), and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research (www.nber.org). Address: Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-1900. Email: borenste@haas.berkeley.edu. Nancy Rose is Professor of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (econwww.mit.edu) and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. Address: MIT Department of Economics, E52-280b, 50 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02142-1347. Email: nrose@mit.edu. Nancy Rose gratefully acknowledges fellowship support from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and MIT. We thank Andrea Martens, Jen-Jen L’ao, Yao Lu and Michael Bryant for research assistance on this project. For helpful comments and discussions, we thank Jim Dana, Joe Farrell, Michael Levine, Steven Berry, participants in the NBER conference on regulatory reform, September 2005, and seminars at University of Toronto, Northwestern University, University of Michigan, UC Berkeley, and UC Davis. This paper is forthcoming as Chapter 2 of Economic Regulation and Its Reform: What Have We Learned?, N.L....
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