...The phrase “bigger is better” reflected the popularity of many vehicles sold throughout the 1990s and early into the new millennium. Big, hulking SUVs dominated the streets and highways in all parts of the country. This idea started to change as fuel prices started to rise. People then started to realize that the large cars they had taken such pride in at one time were becoming more and more expensive to own as it cost more to fuel and maintain them. The industry shifted to smaller, more fuel efficient models in order to save money. Background – “Give me more. Bigger is always better. Everything is bigger in Texas.” Sentiments like these do well to describe the thinking of American’s as a culture. We like big houses, big meals, big TVs, and big cars. “The trend toward more powerful engines, the shift to trucks and greater luxury, offset the technical gains that we've made in fuel economy," said John DeCicco, a senior associate for the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, a nonprofit research group that has become a lonely voice of conservation these days. (Peters, 2005) Mr. DeCicco’s comments in an article written back in 1995 highlight the increased demand for large cars during that period. He states “Call it Cherokee madness or Bronco fever.” One symptom was that many drivers said they were not as concerned about the higher cost of driving. There was a shift in the use of rugged vehicles from just outings like camping trips, but also for regular daily...
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...now seeking to invest in two gas stations and has asked me for my educational perspective. His rationale for this business venture is that American consumers have officially accepted the insanely high gasoline prices and what he doesn’t earn in gas sales, he will compensate with convenience item sales. Willing to do anything to assist my family and also not quite sure if it is a smart investment, I told Aly I would do my research and relay my findings. In order to effectively help ALy, there are certain relevant economic principles that must be assessed and determined. The issues to be addressed when starting a business, such as a gas station, are: demand determinants, supply determinants, costs of production, pricing, and normal or economic profit or loss. Demand Determinants Before any business can begin, regardless of the type of business, the potential business owners and investors must first determine if the demand for the products and/or services the business is providing is high or low. As gas consumers, certain factors are assessed in determining their reactivity to gas prices. Gas consumers must ask themselves: What factors would make them more or less susceptible to price changes in the gasoline industry? Has he/sheresponded differently to price changes in gasoline during certain periods in their life? Why is it that gas price changes at certain stations seem to affect them more than gas price changes in the industry as a whole? In consideration to these questions...
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...now seeking to invest in two gas stations and has asked me for my educational perspective. His rationale for this business venture is that American consumers have officially accepted the insanely high gasoline prices and what he doesn’t earn in gas sales, he will compensate with convenience item sales. Willing to do anything to assist my family and also not quite sure if it is a smart investment, I told Aly I would do my research and relay my findings. In order to effectively help ALy, there are certain relevant economic principles that must be assessed and determined. The issues to be addressed when starting a business, such as a gas station, are: demand determinants, supply determinants, costs of production, pricing, and normal or economic profit or loss. Demand Determinants Before any business can begin, regardless of the type of business, the potential business owners and investors must first determine if the demand for the products and/or services the business is providing is high or low. As gas consumers, certain factors are assessed in determining their reactivity to gas prices. Gas consumers must ask themselves: What factors would make them more or less susceptible to price changes in the gasoline industry? Has he/sheresponded differently to price changes in gasoline during certain periods in their life? Why is it that gas price changes at certain stations seem to affect them more than gas price changes in the industry as a whole? In consideration to these questions...
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...FRANK T. ROTHAERMEL DAVID R. KING Tesla Motors, Inc. January 1, 2015. Elon Musk, chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesla is taking it easy on this New Year’s Day. While having his coffee, he scrolls through some recent issues of The Wall Street Journal on his iPad. A headline from one current story jumps out at him, “Gasoline prices have declined for 88 consecutive days, the longest streak of falling prices on record.”1 The slide in gas prices, which began in September 2014, also happened to coincide with the slide in Tesla Motors (TSLA) stock. With increasing oil, and therefore gas, prices, people had an incentive for purchasing electric cars. Now with gas prices drop- ping, the incentive to buy would start to become less of one, and the demand for the product would probably drop. This was one of the challenges facing Musk on this New Year’s Day. In addition to hav- ing to contend with lower selling costs due to rising production, Tesla was also confronting increasing competition and economic headwinds that were likely going to lower the demand for electric cars. Musk is a serial entrepreneur longing to leave a legacy, and he believes that Tesla just might be the company that will help him leave his mark. He has a large profile already and has been described as “Henry Ford and Robert Oppenheimer in one person,” as well as “Tony Stark, the eccentric inventor better known as Iron Man.”2, 3 (In fact, Musk made a cameo appearance in Iron Man 2.) But, with sev- eral pressing...
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...hybrid cars. 3. Analyze the impact this technology will have on our political relationships with oil-producing countries. Make sure that you address economic issues such as: trade, production, and supply in your analysis. 4. Express how you think this technology will influence world politics? Make sure that you address economic issues such as: trade, production, and supply in your analysis. 5. Explain what impact do you think these cars will have on our economy? Consider the following issues in your analysis: consumer buying, sustainability, recycling, and fuel economy. Abstract “The first hybrid gas-electric car in the United States, the original Honda Insight, reported its first 17 sales in December 1999. One decade and 1.5 million hybrids later, the auto industry is ready to embrace hybrids and other green cars like never before.” (Berman, 2009) Hybrid cars are extremely popular internationally and it’s easy to see why. “Hybrid cars complement gas engines with electric motors to improve gas mileage or to increase power through the use of a combined-propulsion system. Toyota and Honda are both major players in the hybrid space, but just about every other automaker is working on a hybrid model.” (Cunningham, 2014) The hybrids with high-end proficiency have far superior fuel efficiency than conventional gas-powered vehicles. Hybrids of today have ranges of greater than 400 miles per tank. There are two main types; normal hybrid cars, and full hybrid cars. Normal...
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...Exposure to air pollution is associated with numerous effects on human health, including pulmonary, cardiac, vascular, and neurological impairments. The health effects vary greatly from person to person. High-risk groups such as the elderly, infants, pregnant women, and sufferers from chronic heart and lung diseases are more susceptible to air pollution. Children are at greater risk because they are generally more active outdoors and their lungs are still developing. Exposure to air pollution can cause both acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) health effects. Acute effects are usually immediate and often reversible when exposure to the pollutant ends. Some acute health effects include eye irritation, headaches, and nausea. Chronic effects are usually not immediate and tend not to be reversible when exposure to the pollutant ends. Some chronic health effects include decreased lung capacity and lung cancer resulting from long-term exposure to toxic air pollutants. The scientific techniques for assessing health impacts of air pollution include air pollutant monitoring, exposure assessment, dosimetry, toxicology, and epidemiology. [pic] Figure:Health Effects caused by Air Pollution Although in humans pollutants can affect the skin, eyes and other body systems, they affect primarily the respiratory system. Air is breathed in through the nose, which acts as the primary filtering system of the body. The small hairs and the warm, humid conditions in the nose effectively remove...
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...13, 2014 Situation C Last night about 7pm, I went to fill up on gas at the closest gas station by my home in Merrillville, Indiana. The Speedway gas station had gas for $3.49 a gallon for regular unleaded gas. Midgrade gas was $3.69 a gallon, Premium was $3.89 a gallon, and Diesel was $3.89 a gallon. I always try to fill up before the work week, as I do not want to get stuck in Chicago, Illinois where I work, and have to fill up on gas. Gas prices are dramatically different in my 40 mile radius. Today, gas prices in Chicago off my exit for work are $3.99 a gallon for unleaded gas at the Marathon gas station at the corner of South Blue Island Ave and Western Ave (Gas Prices in 60608 Zip Code, GasBuddy). That is 50 cent savings per gallon. If I just filled up 10 gallons, which is a savings of $5. It doesn’t sound like much, but I used to fill up twice a week on my about 46 mile commute to work. For the month, that would be an estimated savings of $40 if I do not use my vehicle for anything else but work. Now my cousin Edgar, who is always thinking about the next get rich scheme, is thinking about possibly opening up two gas stations. He believes that he will make a good profit if he also sells convenience items at both of his gas stations. He found out I was taking this Economics course and figured I would be happy to help him research his idea of opening two gas stations in the area. I wasn’t too thrilled, as he always is trying to find get rich quick schemes...
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...Cross-Elasticities 25 May 2012 Todd Litman Victoria Transport Policy Institute Abstract This paper summarizes price elasticities and cross elasticities for use in public transit planning. It describes how elasticities are used, and summarizes previous research on transit elasticities. Commonly used transit elasticity values are largely based on studies of short- and medium-run impacts performed decades ago when real incomes where lower and a larger portion of the population was transit dependent. As a result, they tend to be lower than appropriate to model long-run impacts. Analysis based on these elasticity values tends to understate the potential of transit fare reductions and service improvements to reduce problems such as traffic congestion and vehicle pollution, and understate the long-term negative impacts that fare increases and service cuts will have on transit ridership, transit revenue, traffic congestion and pollution emissions. Originally published as “Transit Price Elasticities and Cross-Elasticities,” Journal of Public Transportation, Vol. 7, No. 2, (www.nctr.usf.edu/jpt/pdf/JPT 7-2 Litman.pdf), 2004, pp. 37-58. Todd Litman 2004-2011 You are welcome and encouraged to copy, distribute, share and excerpt this document and its ideas, provided the author is given attribution. Please send your corrections, comments and suggestions for improvement. Transit Elasticities and Price Elasticities Victoria Transport Policy Institute Introduction Prices affect consumers’...
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...Tesla: Supercharging the Future by Akash G. Nandi An honors thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Science Undergraduate College Leonard N. Stern School of Business New York University May 2013 Professor Marti G. Subrahmanyam Faculty Adviser Professor Joseph Foudy Thesis Adviser 1 I. Introduction...................................................................................................................Page 4 A. The Inefficiency of Cars Today B. Thesis Objective C. Thesis II. Research and Resources...............................................................................................Page 7 A. Research Framework B. Research Perspectives C. Resources and Data III. Tesla in Context.............................................................................................................Page 9 A. The Global Auto Industry B. Tesla: The Innovative Disrupter C. Sparking the Electric Revolution IV. The Man Behind the Machine...................................................................................Page 12 A. Elon Musk B. Entrepreneur from the Start C. Space X V. Tesla Motors Overview...............................................................................................Page 15 A. Company Offerings B. Phase I. Roadster C. Phase II. Models S and X 2 D. Phase III. Project BlueStar VI. How It Works: The Model S......................................................................................Page...
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...American company that designs, manufactures and sells electric cars and electric vehicle powertrain components. Named after the scientist Nikola Tesla, Tesla Motors ($TSLA) was founded in 2003. Exactly who founded Tesla Motors can be discussed, but it was probably by a group of intrepid Silicon Valley engineers Martin Eberhard, Marc Tarpenning, and Ian Wright. Their goal was to build an electric vehicle with the same performance as a Porsche and more environmental friendly than a Toyota Prius. The problem was that the founders didn't have the money needed to realize their idea, so they contacted Elon Musk, who decided to invest in the company. Elon Musk had earlier founded the companies Zip2, PayPal, and SpaceX. The difference between Elon Musk and the founders was that Elon Musk wanted Tesla Motors to become an improved General Motors with several car models, while the original founders wanted to design only a sports car. Elon Musk became interested in electric cars because he is well aware of peak oil. The idea behind peak oil is that oil is a finite resource we will run out of. Elon Musk believes the production of oil will begin to decrease after year 2020. As the production of oil decreases, the price of oil will increase and more people will buy electric cars SECTION II: Current Situation Tesla Motors headquarters is in Palo Alto, California. Its goal is to speed up this transition from gasoline cars to electric cars, thus their vision is "Create the most compelling car...
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...3.3 Financial Objectives 3.4 Target Markets 3.5 Positioning 3.6 Strategies 3.7 Marketing Mix 3.8 Marketing Research 4.0 Controls 4.1 Implementation 4.2 Marketing Organization 4.3 Contingency Planning 5.0 Conclusion 1.0 Executive Summary Smith’s Cruise Controls is a new company that offers programmable cruise controls on Honda vehicles, starting with the Civic in 2012. The Civic was chosen because they offer a hybrid model and is already gas efficient and is the most popular model sold by Honda. The programmable cruise control will allow the driver to set two different speeds that will stay programmed after the vehicle has been shut off and back on again. This allows the average commuter to not have to continue to change the speed as their travel requires them to do so. This option will also allow the driver to save on gas mileage, which is a concern with consumers. Although there are cruise controls available today, Smith’s programmable cruise control allows the driver to set two different speeds to alternate between as they are driving. Current cruise control only offers one speed setting and resets each time the vehicle is restarted. Smith’s Cruise Controls will develop its company by expanding into other Honda models, including Acura models. Smith’s Cruise Controls will also have a website that is accessible to consumers to answer any questions about the product, by providing a description of the product and frequently asked questions. The website...
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...production techniques during early 1910s. The Japanese soon followed by offering lean production techniques in the 1970s. Riding high on economical revival in many developing countries in Asia and Europe, the industry’s global output touched 64.6 million vehicles in 2005. But with a downward slide in market share, the Big Three was fast losing their dominant position to Toyota, Honda, and Nissan, thereby setting the ground for the emergence of New Six. Meanwhile UK, served as the single largest customer for European auto-makers. Japanese players were the leaders in the light vehicle market and hybrid market. China and India attracted the attention of global auto-makers, vying for setting up a cost-effective export base for meeting the demand from Asian markets. Despite government controls, Chinese market boasted of sales of more than 2.7 million commercial vehicles in 2004. With reports of highest growth in mobility in the world at 3% per annum, further surge in demand was anticipated from Chinese market. A booming economy and a low interest regime helped India to make its mark in the automobile sector in 2004, with sales figures exceeding more than 1 million in the passenger car segment for the first time. The sale of commercial vehicles showed a record growth of 29% over 2003. Foreign auto-makers such as Mercedes Benz,...
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...CHAPTER 6 SELF-EMPLOYED BUSINESS INCOME SCHEDULE C Discussion Questions 1. Discuss the definition of a trade or business. Why does it matter whether a taxpayer is classified as an employee or self-employed? Answer: A trade or business is any activity that is engaged in for profit continually and regularly. The income from a sole proprietor is netted with related ordinary and necessary business expenses to determine the effect on AGI. 2. Discuss the concepts of ordinary, necessary, and reasonable in relation to trade or business expenses. Answer: According §162, in order for an expense to be deductible it must be an ordinary and necessary expenditure. The expense must also be reasonable (as established by the courts). A trade or business expense must not only be ordinary and necessary but also reasonable in amount and reasonable in relation to its purpose. The Supreme Court (in Welch, T., 1933, S Ct, 290 US 111) held that in order for an expense to be ordinary, in must be customary or usual in the taxpayers particular business. The necessary criterion refers to an expense that is appropriate and helpful, and not necessarily essential to the taxpayer’s business. Reasonableness is not specifically included by IRC §162, but has been added by the courts. In these cases, the courts held that a trade or business expense must not only be ordinary and necessary but also reasonable in amount and reasonable in relation to its purpose. 3. What...
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...encounter barriers overseas, which is why New Zealand pursues an active trade agenda. To advance and safeguard New Zealand’s interests, we need to establish and maintain our exporters’ access to markets that matter. Since 2000, trade agreements have proliferated worldwide. As our global competitors develop new networks of trade agreements, we need to match their progress or risk our exporters being disadvantaged. Free trade does not just benefit our exporters. New Zealand importers and consumers enjoy wider and cheaper access to many countries’ goods and services. The idea of introducing a new truck to the region that is more eco-friendly is in the best interest for us and them. Since the earthquake in 2012 many of the buildings and even vehicles were damaged and are in need of replacement. Right now introducing a truck to the area would most likely give us an advantage over the other car manufactures that are selling in the area. The pursuit of trade agreements complements New Zealand's participation in multilateral and regional fora such as: • The World Trade Organization (WTO) • Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) • Industry: Automotive Manufacturing Median Salary by Years’ Experience Current state of the labor market: Strong The overall state of the labor market remains strong. Improved economic conditions are reflected in increased labor demand, while migration-led population growth and high labor force participation rates have expanded labor supply. The unemployment...
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...Ford Report on the BUSINESS IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE FORD REPORT ON THE BUSINESS IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE Table of Contents Foreword 1 Introduction Implications Actions Challenges Convergent Issues Commitment 2 2 3 3 3 Background The climate issue Business Drivers Market Share Regulatory compliance Shareholder value Industry Considerations 4 4 4 4 5 5 Strategic Roadmap Strategic principles Strategic actions Product Policy Plants People Partnerships 6 6 7 7 8 9 9 9 Conclusion 10 Appendix 1 Excerpt from 2004-2005 Sustainability Report 11-20 Appendix 2 California GHG regulations 21 Foreword In November 2004, Ford Motor Company received a shareholder resolution from the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) and the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies (Ceres) and others requesting we release information specific to our greenhouse gas emissions strategy. Much of the information requested is reported annually in our Sustainability Report (formerly called the Corporate Citizenship Report), and we have excerpted the most recent Sustainability Report as an appendix to this report. However, we agreed to publish the industry's first report dedicated to the issue of climate change and its effect on our business as well as the automotive industry as a whole. While we have worked closely with ICCR, Ceres and other stakeholders throughout the writing of this report, the material contained here is is our view of this...
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