alevel economics 基础 讲义PPT课件

Marginal analysis
• Marginal analysis benefits government policy makers, as well.
• Weighing the costs and benefits can help government officials determine if allocating additional resources to a particular public program will generate additional benefits for the general public
Short-Run v Long Run
• Short-Run:
A time period in which at least one factor of production is fixed (i.e. cannot increase its amount) it is not defined in terms of number of days/weeks)
−What could you be doing if you were not currently studying?
−How many new roads have to be forgone if the government spends tax revenues on homeland security?
A-LEVEL Microeconomics basic
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1 What is Economics about? The problem of scarcity
• Economics is the study of how society chooses to allocate its scarce resources to the production of goods and services in order to satisfy unlimited wants.
Marginal analysis
• Marginal analysis examines how the costs and benefits change in response to incremental changes in actions.
• Any additional action by an individual or a firm, such as buying an additional pair of shoes or increasing production of a product by an additional unit, brings additional cost.
TC = TFC + TVC
Total costs
Note: The x and y axis units here are unrelated to the previous diagram
Average cost concepts
• Average fixed cost (AFC) – total fixed cost
−Earlier: axe, bow and arrow −Now: buildings, production equipment, software,
factories.
A note about financial capital
• Economists do not include money in their definition of capital money simply gives a measure to the value of assets.
• May be renewable or non-renewable
源自文库
Resources: labour
• The mental and physical capacity of workers to produce goods and services
• For example: farmers, nurses, lawyers
Three categories of resources
• Land • Labour • Capital
Resources: land
• Any natural resource provided by nature used in the process of production
• For example: forests, minerals, wildlife, oil, rivers, lakes, oceans
on comparing the extra benefit with the extra cost
–the social implications of choice society i.e. taking into
consideration how a certain choice may have an indirect cost on
divided by the quantity of output produced:
• Average variable cost (AVQC) – total variable
cost divided by the quantity of output produced:
Q
Average total cost
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• Human wants are unlimited, but
• Resources are limited (scarce) • A central problem therefore exists…we call this the
problem of SCARCITY
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Entrepreneurship is a special type of labour the creative ability of individuals to manage the combination of resources to produce products.
Entrepreneurship
• Total variable costs are costs
– that are zero when output is zero and – vary as output varies.
• Total cost is the sum of fixed cost and variable
cost.
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4 Two branches of economics
• Microeconomics is the branch of economics that studies decision-making by a single individual, household, firm, industry or level of government.
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6 Microeconomic Issues
–demand and supply decisions of what to produce, how to produce, for whom to produce
–the concept of opportunity cost based on comparing what you have
• Total cost divided by the quantity of output
decided vs what is the next best alternative you have given up
–rational decision making based on cost vs benefit; best value for money
–weighing up marginal costs and marginal benefits based
Opportunity cost
• The best alternative sacrificed for a chosen alternative
• Opportunity cost applies to personal, group and national decision-making, for example
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Resources
• Resources are the basic categories of inputs used to produce goods and services.
• Resources can also be called the factors of production.
• The central question in marginal analysis is whether the expected benefits of that action exceed the added cost
Marginal analysis
• Marginal analysis helps businesses and individuals balance the costs and benefits of additional actions---whether to produce more, consume more, or other decisions---and determine whether the benefits will exceed costs, thus increasing utility.
• Macroeconomics is the branch of economics that studies decision-making for the economy as a whole.
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5 Macroeconomic Issues
–aggregate demand, aggregate supply –economic growth –unemployment –inflation –balance of trade –exchange rates
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3 Definition of economics
Economics is the study of society’s decisions about
–production –consumption –allocation of scarce resources
in order to satisfy as many unlimited wants as possible.
• Organises and manages the resources needed to produce goods and services
Resources: capital
• Capital is the physical plant, machinery and equipment used to produce other goods. That is, human-made goods that do not directly satisfy human wants, for example:
• Long Run:
A time period long enough for all inputs to be varied It is not a defined period of time;
Cost concepts
• Total fixed costs are costs
– that do not vary as output varies and – must be paid even if output is zero.