An indifference curve is a line showing all the combinations of two goods which give a consumer equal utility. In other words, the consumer would be indifferent to these different combinations. Example of choice of goods which give consumers the same utility Table plotted as indifference curve Diminishing marginal utility The indifference curve is convex …
Government intervention in the labour market to reduce inequality and market failure can take various forms. Minimum wages/living wages Maximum wages (rarely used) Legislation to prevent discrimination on the grounds of age, sex, religion. Legislation to support or regulate trade unions. Maximum working week Legislation on health and safety Behavioural nudges (e.g. encouraging workers to …
Should I boycott goods made in sweatshop factories? Another question from – What would Keynes do? This is a dilemma for an economist. If we boycott goods made in ‘sweatshop factories’ – does it help or hinder workers in developing economies? Firstly, when we hear about working conditions in some ‘sweatshop factories’ – low pay, …
The long-run trend rate of growth is the average sustainable rate of economic growth over a period of time. It could also be termed as the ‘underlying trend rate of economic growth’ The long-run trend rate is determined by growth in productive capacity (AS). It is the rate of growth which is consistent with low …
A Pigovian tax is a tax placed on any good which creates negative externalities. The aim of a Pigovian tax is to make the price of the good equal to the social marginal cost and create a more socially efficient allocation of resources. It is named after the economist Arthur Pigou who developed the concept …
Profit is the surplus revenue after a firm has paid all its costs. Profit can be seen as the monetary reward to shareholders and owners of a business. In a capitalist economy, profit plays an important role in creating incentives for business and entrepreneurs. For an incumbent firm, the reward of higher profit will encourage …
Readers Question: Does the Rahn Curve support the empirical evidence? If not, why not? Can you prove that there is a relationship between the level of Government Spending and GDP growth? The Rahn Curve suggests that there is an optimal level of government spending which maximises the rate of economic growth. Initially, higher government spending …
Evaluation is the ability to look at issues from a critical perspective; to look at other potential outcomes. Evaluation questions will typically begin with words like, discuss, evaluate, to what extent, assess. These are some ways to get evaluation marks for microeconomics. (note there are potentially more ways to evaluate but this gives a few …