...ECON3007 Economic Policy Analysis Topic: Institutions and Economic Reforms Wendy Carlin This topic focuses on the role of institutions in economic growth and the implications of this for the design of economic reforms. We examine why some large-scale economic reforms have been surprisingly successful and others have been disappointing. It will be argued that the consistency between existing institutions in the economy and the reforms is an important factor in determining reform success. We look at property rights and contracting institutions, at the experience of transition economies – both in the former Soviet bloc and China and at reform policies including privatization. The empirical techniques that we study include cross-sectional and panel regressions using aggregate (i.e. country-level) data and micro-economic data. Key readings: Institutions and growth: Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S. and Robinson, J. A. (2001) (AJR) “The Colonial Origins of Comparative Development: An Empirical Investigation”. The American Economic Review, Volume 91, Number 5. Use the UCL Economic Journals page and choose the Atypon link. Acemoglu, D., Johnson, S. (2005) (AJ) “Unbundling Institutions” Journal of Political Economy Volume 113, Number 5, 949-995. Use the UCL Economic Journals page. Deaton, A. (2009) ‘Instruments of Development: Randomization in the Tropics and the Search for the Elusive Keys to Economic Development’. NBER Working Paper 14690. Use google. Transition: China and Russia ...
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...Scarcity & Opportunity Cost Economics is a very important field of study in modern society. It helps us to understand the choices we have to make to satisfy our unlimited wants and needs to have a better life. Microeconomics is the study of households, firms, and government in specific markets. One of the main problems economics tries to address is scarcity. Scarcity is the term economist use to describe a situation when the amount of something available is not sufficient to satisfy the desire or demand for it. Scarcity can be applied to all aspects of economics and is one of the most crucial points to understand. Because we are consumers in a free market, we live on income constraints or budgets. Limited income forces us to make choices about goods and services we will purchase, as well as goods and services we will forgo. As a society, we also experience scarcity. Societies face scarce economic resources. Economist classify these economic resources into four categories: land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurial ability. Land is considered to be not only physical land but also water, oil, wind, and all other natural resources. Labor would be described as not only the workforce, but the quality of the workers in the workforce. Capital is the facilities, tools, machinery, and any other components that go into manufacturing a good. Entrepreneurial ability is outlined by the people who exploit opportunities in markets. Entrepreneurs combine economic resources with creative and...
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...Economics’ Approach to Financial Planning by Laurence J. Kotlikoff, Ph.D. |Executive Summary | |Economists long have shown that when it comes to consuming lifetime economic resources, households seek to neither splurge nor hoard, but | |rather to achieve a smooth living standard over time. Consumption smoothing not only underlies the economics approach to spending and | |saving, it is central to the field’s analysis of insurance decisions and portfolio choice. | |Smoothing a household's living standard requires using a sophisticated mathematical technique called dynamic programming to solve a number | |of difficult and interconnected problems. Advances in dynamic programming coupled with today's computers are permitting economists to move | |from describing financial problems to prescribing financial solutions. | |Conventional planning’s targeted liability approach has some surface similarities to consumption smoothing. But the method used to find | |retirement- and survivor-spending targets is virtually guaranteed to disrupt, rather than smooth, a household’s living standard as it ages.| |Moreover, even very small targeting mistakes will suffice to produce major consumption disruption for the simple reason that the wrong...
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...What is Econometrics? Econometrics is a rapidly developing branch of economics which, broadly speaking, aims to give empirical content to economic relations. The term ‘econometrics’ appears to have been first used by Pawel Ciompa as early as 1910; although it is Ragnar Frisch, one of the founders of the Econometric Society, who should be given the credit for coining the term, and for establishing it as a subject in the sense in which it is known today (see Frisch, 1936, p. 95). Econometrics can be defined generally as ‘the application of mathematics and statistical methods to the analysis of economic data’, or more precisely in the words of Samuelson, Koopmans and Stone (1954), ... as the quantitative analysis of actual economic phenomena based on the concurrent development of theory and observation, related by appropriate methods of inference (p. 142). Other similar descriptions of what econometrics entails can be found in the preface or the introduction to most texts in econometrics. Malinvaud (1966), for example, interprets econometrics broadly to include ‘every application of mathematics or of statistical methods to the study of economic phenomena’. Christ (1966) takes the objective of econometrics to be ‘the production of quantitative economic statements that either explain the behaviour of variables we have already seen, or forecast (i.e. predict) behaviour that we have not yet seen, or both’. Chow (1983) in a more recent textbook succinctly defines econometrics ‘as...
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...Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics explains how people interact within markets to get what they want or accomplish certain goals. An economy exists for two basic reasons, firstly, human wants for goods and services are unlimited and secondly, productive resources with which to produce goods and services are scarce. An economy has to decide how to use its scarce resources to obtain the maximum possible satisfaction of the members of the society. Economics is studied so you can become a well-informed citizen. Political and social leaders often develop policies that have broad economic effects. International relations are also dominated by economic concerns. Economic knowledge is needed if you are to understand the effects of taxation, unemployment, inflation, welfare, economic growth, exchange rates, or productivity. We also study economics because it helps the individual make more informed decisions. Consumers, workers, and investors usually make wiser choices if they understand the likely economic effects of the choice to be made. Business executives have more insight for making decisions if they understand how the economy works and the likely effects of economic conditions on a business. Hypotheses are propositions that are tested and used to develop economic theories. Highly reliable theories are called principles or laws. Theories, principles, and laws are meaningful statements...
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...HW assignment 4 (Week9): Analysis of the Business Cycle. The main objective of this exercise is to get students thinking analytically and creatively about the two-edged nature of many economic phenomena so as to present a “balanced” perspective based on economics principles, theories and concepts against the backdrop of conceptual and analytical thinking. Visit the web sites or similar ones containing national economic data. National Economic Accounts at the Bureau of Labor Statistics at http://www.bea.gov , Bureau of Labor Statistics at http://www.bls.gov/data/, The Conference Board at http://www.conference-board.org/economics/indicators.cfm, US Census Bureau at http://www.census.gov/mtis/www/mtis_current.html, National Bureau of Economic Research at http://www.nber.org/releases/, The Federal Reserve at http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h15/update/ Review the most recent 8 – 12 months of data on real GDP growth, inflation/CPI, unemployment, Interest rates, consumer confidence index, consumer sentiment index, inventory level, and other relevant economic data. Based on the collected data, analyze the current macroeconomic situation and its impact on any two(2) Monopolistically competitive firms of your choice. Explore in particular how the two companies’ respond to the macroeconomic conditions in terms of their: • stock performance, • current and future sales revenue, • current and future profits, • labor costs, and • hiring decisions. Your paper should...
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...MAIN TOPICS OF MICRO ECONOMICS I. BASIC CONCEPTS OF ECONOMICS 1. Nature and Scope of Economics 2. Some Basic Concepts 3. Methodological Issues in Economics 4. Methods Laws and Assumptions in Economic Theory 5. Economic Models 6. Production Possibility Curve and Circular Flow of Economic Activity 7. Economic Statics and Dynamics 8. Economy Its Vital Processes and Basic Problems 9. Economic Systems 10. Price System and Mechanism 11. Equilibrium 2. CONSUMPTION THEORY 1. Neo-Classical Utility Analysis 2. Demand and its Law 3. Indifference Curve Theory 4. The Concept of Consumer’s Surplus 5. The Revealed preference theory of demand 6. Elasticity of Demand 3. PRODUCTION THEORY 1. Factors of Production 2. Characteristics of Land and Labour 3. Theories of Population 4. Division of Labour and Machinery 5. Capital and Capital Formation 6. Localisation of Industries 7. Scale of Production 8. Types of Business Units 9. Organisation 10. Laws of Returns : The Traditional Approach 11. Laws of Returns : The Isoquant and Isocost Approach 4. PRODUCT PRICING 1. Nature of Costs and Cost Curves 2. Market Structures 3. The Concept of Revenue 4. Supply – Its Law, Elasticity and Curves 5. Equilibrium of Firm and Industry Under Perfect Competition 6. Pricing under Perfect Competition – Demand and Supply 7. Applications of Demand and Supply Analysis under Perfect Competition 8. Joint Demand and Supply 9. Monopoly 10. Monopsony and Bilateral Competition ...
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...Thesis Economics Thesis The goal of an economics thesis is to solve a problem regarding the exchange of goods and services in an innovative way. To this end, the student may explore macroeconomics, the study of large economics systems, or microeconomics, the study of person-to-person exchanges of goods and services, in a completely unique manner or in a manner that simply expands on or addresses previous ideas. Students who are struggling to develop ideas for their economics theses may benefit from asking themselves what problems they have a passion for solving. For example, perhaps the student feels greatly irritated about gas prices and could develop an idea on how to cut costs. Perhaps the student has a fascination with the failure of communism and would like to develop a thesis on where the economic system went wrong and why. If the student cannot identify a topic that would produce a viable economics thesis, he or she should talk with the major professor and see if together they can brainstorm a usable idea. Economics theses may have concerns that most disciplines do not have, particularly in formatting. Because pictures can carry a great deal of information in a much more succinct way than text and because economics theses often handle highly complex issues, writers of economics theses may find it useful to include a number of charts, graphs, and tables both in appendices and in the body of the thesis itself. Depending on the complexity of those graphics, the student...
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...classified and analyzed. The first studies on the economic impact of port activity emerged in the United States in the second half of the 1960s. The ports of New York and New Jersey were the first to be taken into consideration. In the 1970s, the first methodological discussions took place, based on the development of the input–output model and its application to the measurement of the impact of ports. The main stances opposing this kind of study were advocated by Robert C. Waters, while those in favour had Semoon Chang as their main champion, and most of Waters’ criticisms were dealt with. 1. PORT ECONOMIC IMPACTS Ports contribute much to their economies, and port economic impact analysis is the major tool for documenting those contributions. The primary objective of port impact studies is to inform the public of the importance of port services, and additional benefits that may exist vary with particular studies. And also, the decision of local governmental agencies to construct port facilities is often preceded by a port economic impact study. The majority of existing port impact studies begin with definitions of port impacts, as an improper notion of port impact might well lead to an entirely wrong estimation of the total economic impact of a port. One of the major challenges in port impact studies is to identify the port-related industries and find out the degree of port dependency of these industries. Generally, economic impacts of port on the local economy can be divided...
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...stirred up a massive cause for debate, and for the correct reason. The decision the English citizen is going to comprehend is crucial for the welfare for the English economy, and is known to be the ‘’most important decision you’ll make in a generation’’ As quoted by George Osbourne, Chancellor of the Exchequer, in an article about foreign relations with Brussels. It is a very important decision to the English taxpayer, but is equally important for the British economy, but I think, is arguably most important for the small or large, private or public, English Business. The English economy is growing by 1.5% per annum, this is not enough. Compared to foreign relations such as China, with a G.D.P growth rate or economic growth rate of nearly 9% a year, China has a faster economic growth rate by 6x. Now what do these numerical figures mean in contrast to leaving the EU? Well, whether or not to leave the EU has a massive effect on our economy, influenced by trade. But how does this correlate to affecting British businesses? Well a faster, well protected economy will allow businesses to run faster, trade faster, produce faster, and become efficient, which...
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...Economic Decisions Individuals and societies alike face many decisions. Individuals tend to make economic decisions when faced with trade-offs, and because of that, individuals are required to compare costs and benefits of their alternative actions referred to as the opportunity cost. Rational individuals tend to think of marginal change during the process of decision-making, and therefore, may respond differently to incentives whilst making economic decisions. This paper discusses the four principles of economics, a decision associated with marginal change, the incentive(s) that could lead to making different decision, and finally, how the principles of economics affect decision-making, interaction and the workings of the economy as whole. The Principles of Economics A trade-off is often referred to as the “technique of reducing or forgoing one or more desirable outcomes in exchange for increasing or obtaining other desirable outcomes to maximize the total return or effectiveness under given circumstances.” (BusinessDictionary.com, 2009) In brief, individuals choose something over something else, or give up something in order to get something else. Whatever “it” is that individuals sacrifice in order to get something, is generally “its” cost, and cost is often linked and associated with money, an opportunity cost however, could be the cost of anything i.e. time or health sacrificed in order to get something. Marginal changes are incremental adjustments individuals make...
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...single monopoly and share production and profit. However, if this price-fixing game is repeated indefinitely, it would come to a moment that one firm cheats on their collusive agreement. If the cheater cuts its price and the complier remains the agreed price. As shown in the figure, for the complier, ATC now exceeds price and for the cheater, the price exceeds ATC. The industry output is larger than the monopoly output and the industry price is lower than the monopoly price. The total economic profit made by the industry is also smaller than the monopoly’s economic profit. Therefore the complier incurs an economic loss while the cheater gains economic profit. If since both firms have an incentive to cheat as long as price exceeds marginal cost. In this price-fixing game, it will occur a situation that both firms cheat. If both firms produce more cigarettes than the number agreed, the industry output will be increased, the price of cigarettes will fall and both firms makes zero economic profit, as shown in the figure. -In monopolistic competition a company in the short run, makes its output and price decision just like a monopoly company does. The following figure illustrates the monopolistic competition in the short run. As you can see, when the marginal revenue equals its marginal cost (MR = MC), the firm charges the highest price (P) that buyers are willing to pay for this quantity, which is highly higher than the average total cost (ATC). Therefore the firm makes...
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...both Macro and Micro Economic principles and is aligned with the California State Standards for Social Science in Economics. It is designed to provide a basic understanding of the core concepts, ideas, and theories relevant to the study of Economics as a social science in today’s world. Although many of the topics we cover will be new to many students, it is my goal to relate them to both the life of a teenager about to embark on his or her own economic odyssey and the larger issues filling up space on the pages of our newspapers and the screens of our computers. Whether you like it (or even know it) or not, we are all subject to the economic system we live in and its ever-changing conditions. We are all economic actors! Course Topics: 1. What is Economics? What are the basic ideas, questions, and vocabulary underlying the study of economics as a social science? 2. Economic Systems How do society’s decide what to make, how to make it, and who gets what is made? 3. Supply and Demand How are prices, the language consumers and producers use to communicate, determined in a free market system? 4. Labor Unions What do they do, what are their pros and cons, what is their history, and their current status? 5. Financial Markets What are the fundamentals of our financial system and how can you begin to learn to take advantage of it for your own benefit? 6. Macroeconomics How are large-scale economic indicators, such as...
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...Title: Economics Name: Professor’s name: Course title: Date: Economics Suggest how an economist would approach the problem of alcohol abuse. Provide two (2) possible solutions to this problem. Include the four (4) elements of the economic way of thinking in your analysis. It is a genuine case of negative externalities both in production and consumption. Alcohol production also causes pollution of the environment especially due to the large CO2 emissions produced by factories and some of the byproducts. Two possible solutions to these problems proposed by economists are: • Coase theorem. Negotiating for compensation with no any government intervention on condition that the cost of negotiation is not high and the property rights are secured. • Pigouvian regulations or taxes: Drunk driving is incorporated. An economist would raise cost through reduced availability and added taxes Analyze how prescription drugs affect the demand and supply of other products and services in this country. According to Garrod and Willis (2007), in economics, the law of supply and demand is regard as one of the fundamental principles running an economy. It is illustrated as the situation where as supply raises the price will likely drop or vice versa. As demand raises the price will likely increase or vice versa. Essentially this is a standard that nearly all people intuitively understand concerning the relationship of services and goods against the demand for...
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...RESOURCE | 1 ECONOMICS RESOURCE | 1 ECONOMICS 2009-10: FUNDAMENTALS OF ECONOMIC THINKING Table of Contents Preface to the Economics Resource .................................................................................. 5 Fundamentals of Economics ............................................................................................ 7 The Basic Economic Problem—Scarcity ............................................................................................ 8 Production of Goods and Services .................................................................................................... 10 Increasing Costs ............................................................................................................................... 12 The Factors of Production ............................................................................................................... 14 Benefit-Cost Analysis – Marginal Decision-Making ......................................................................... 15 Marginal Utility and Waffles ............................................................................................................ 17 More on Marginal Utility and the Effect of Prices ............................................................................ 19 Individual and Social Goals .............................................................................................................. 20 Positive and Normative Economics .................
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