ECON 494 - Ch 7
If it's not possible to find a transaction that will make some people better off without harming others, then the market equilibrium is
efficient
It's always possible to design a transaction that will help both buyers or sellers whenever the price of a product is
either above or below the equilibrium price
If the firms in a market are earning an economic loss, then in the long run there will be _____ the market, leading the equilibrium price to _____.
exit from; rise
If the government were to subsidize the price of cars, it's likely that total economic surplus would
fall
If the market for ice cream is in a long-run equilibrium, and the demand for ice cream falls, then the price of ice cream will:
fall in the short run, resulting in economic losses and exit from the market
If the market for soccer balls is in a long run equilibrium, and the demand for soccer balls falls, then we would expect: (select all that apply)
firms to exit the market in the long run the price of soccer balls to fall in the short run
Suppose it's possible to find a transaction that will make some people better off without hurting others. In this case, we know the market equilibrium
is not socially optimal
If the price of a good or service lands above the equilibrium, we can conclude that ______.
it's always possible to design a transaction that will help both buyers or sellers
The opportunity cost of the resources supplied by a firm's owners is the firm's
normal profit
The broader interests of society are _____ promoted by the individual pursuit of self-interest.
not always
Adam Smith's theory of the invisible hand posits the actions of independent, self-interested buyers and sellers will ______ lead to the most efficient allocation of resources.
often
If all of the firms in a market are identical and the equilibrium price in the market equals the minimum of each firm's average total cost curve, then we would expect
neither entry into nor exit from the market
When the market is in equilibrium, there are _____ opportunities for gain available to individuals.
no further
If the total economic surplus from a market is thought of as a pie to be divided among the participants in the market, then imposing price controls will:
reduce the size of the pie
The part of the payment for a factor of production that is greater than the owner's reservation price is called economic ______
rent
The part of the payment for an input that is above the owner's reservation price is economic ____.
rent
Suppose Mrs. Meadows is willing to sell her famous homemade chocolate chip cookies as long as she is paid at least $1.25 for each. If Mrs. Meadows currently sells her cookies for $3.25 each, then her economic rent is:
$2 per cookies 3.25 - 1.25 = 2
Suppose James is willing to work as a chef as long as he is paid at least $2,700 per month. If he currently earns $3,000 per month, then his economic rent is:
$300 per month
Suppose Valerie owns a hardware store. Each year, her revenue is $600,000 and her explicit costs are $550,000. In addition, Valerie estimates that the opportunity cost of all the resources she puts into her business is $100,000 per year. What is Valerie's economic profit?
-50,000 revenue - explicit - implicit 600,000 - 550,000 - 100,000 = -50,000
Taylor used to work as a yoga instructor at the local gym earning $35,000 a year. Taylor quit that job and started working as a personal trainer. Taylor makes $50,000 in total annual revenue. Taylor's only out-of-pocket costs are $12,000 per year for rent and utilities, $1,000 per year for advertising and $3,000 per year for equipment. For Taylor to earn normal profit, Taylor's accounting profit would have to be ______.
35,000
Suppose Emily is an exceptionally talented architect. Her opportunity cost of working as an architect is $60,000 per year, and her salary at the architectural firm where she works is $150,000 per year. Thus, Emily's economic rent from being an architect is:
90,000 150,000 - 60,000 = 90000
Suppose Michelle owns a women's clothing boutique. Each year, her total revenue is $300,000 and her explicit costs are $160,000. In addition, Michelle estimates that the opportunity cost of the resources she puts into her business is $90,000 per year. What is Michelle's normal profit?
90,000 Act. Profit = 300,000 - 160,000 = 140,000 Eco. Profit = 300,000 - 160,000 - 90,000 = 50,000 140,000 - 50,000 = 90,000
Which of the following is an example of the rationing function of price?
Bill Gates purchasing the Mona Lisa for $5 billion
In the long run, a firm should exit the market if its:
economic profit is negative
True or false: The market equilibrium is always efficient.
False
The market equilibrium is efficient if
It's not possible to find a transaction that will help some people without harming others
A firm's explicit costs include
The actual payments a firm makes to its factors of production
Accounting profit is the difference between
a firm's total revenue - its explicit costs
In general, price subsidies will _____ total economic surplus.
decrease
If the firms in a market are earning a positive economic profit, then in the long run, _____ the market will lead economic profit to _____.
entry into; fall Reason: Positive economic profit creates an incentive for new firms to enter the market, leading economic profit to fall.
In the long run, economic loss creates an incentive for
existing firms to exit the market
If the price of a product is below the equilibrium price, then it's _____ to design a transaction that will help both buyers and sellers.
possible
The role that prices play in distributing scarce goods and services to those consumers who value them the most highly is known as the ______ function of price.
rationing
Normal profit is
the opportunity cost of the resources provided by the firm's owners
Suppose Michelle owns a women's clothing boutique. Each year, her total revenue is $300,000 and her explicit costs are $160,000. In addition, Michelle estimates that the opportunity cost of the resources she puts into her business is $90,000 per year. What is Michelle's accounting profit?
140,000 per year revenue - explicit cost 300,000 - 160,000 = 140,000
Suppose Ji-woo owns a self-serve frozen yogurt store. Each year, her total revenue is $220,000, her explicit costs are $110,000, and her implicit costs are $80,000. Should Ji-woo continue to operate her store in the long run?
Yes 220,000 - 110,000 - 80,000 = 30,000 profit is positive
Economic profit is the difference between
a firm's total revenue and the sum of its explicit and implicit costs
Which of the following best describes how a perfectly competitive industry would respond to a sudden increase in popularity of the product? The market demand curve would shift to the right, leading to
a higher equilibrium price in the short run and entry into the market in the long run.
The role that prices play in directing resources away from overcrowded markets towards markets that are underserved is known as the
allocative function of price
If the price of a product is below the equilibrium price, then it's ______ possible to design a transaction that will make both buyers and sellers better off.
always
Price controls are often designed to help the poor, but the fact that they reduce total economic surplus means that alternative policies such as direct income transfers to the poor:
could make everyone better off
The market equilibrium typically will NOT be socially optimal when the costs and benefits to individual participants in the market _____ those experienced by society as whole.
differ from
The allocative function of price is to
direct resources away from markets that are overcrowded and toward markets that are underserved.
The rationing function of price is to
distribute scarce goods to those consumers who value them the most highly
The individual pursuit of self-interest _____ with the broader interests of society.
does not always coincide
If the owners of a business are receiving total revenues just sufficient to cover all of their explicit and implicit costs, then they are
earning a normal profit.
If a firm's economic loss is $10,000, then its _____ is -$10,000.
economic profit
The opportunity costs of all the resources supplied by a firm's owners are the firm's
implicit costs
When the market is _____, there are no further opportunities for gain available to individuals.
in equilibrium
One reason that firms have a strong incentive to develop cost-saving innovations is that these innovations enable the firm to earn an economic profit
in the short run
When a market is efficient and fair in the long run, it can be described as ______.
long-run competitive equilibrium
If there are barriers to entry and exit, then
the allocative function of price cannot operate
A firm's implicit costs are
the opportunity costs of the resources supplied by the firm's owners
If the market for calculators is in a long-run equilibrium, and the demand for calculators increases, then we would expect:
the price of calculators to rise in the short run firms to earn an economic profit in the short run
Adam Smith's theory that the actions of independent self-interested buyers and sellers will often result in the most efficient allocation of resources is
the theory of the invisible hand
Economists believe that
there are important social goals besides economic efficiency
Economic efficiency is important because when markets are efficient
there are more resources available to achieve all our other goals
In the long run, all firms in an industry will tend to earn
zero economic profit
In the long run, in a market in which firms are earning an economic loss, exit will occur until all firms earn
zero economic profit