Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Economics for University

Economic Factors of Production and Income

Factors of Production Defined

• Land (including natural resources): All the "gifts of nature" that we use to produce goods and services.
• Labor: The work time and work effort that people devote to producing goods and services.
• Capital: Consists of tools, instruments, machines, buildings, and other items that have been produced in the past and that businesses now use to produce goods and services.
• Entrepreneurship: The human resource that organizes labor, land, and capital. This involves coming up with new ideas about what and how to produce, making business decisions, and bearing the risks that arise from these decisions.

Human Capital

Human Capital is the knowledge and skill that people obtain from education,...

Understanding Wealth Taxation

A wealth tax is a tax periodically levied on an individuals' net value of assets.

Definition and Scope

These assets, for example, include:

• Bank deposits
• Savings
• Real estate
• Luxury items (art, jewelry, airplanes, etc.)
• Personal trusts

Liabilities like mortgages, loans, or other debt are deducted from a person's wealth.

Global Implementation

Current Adopters

Currently, three countries have a wealth tax implemented in their tax systems:

• Norway
• Spain
• Switzerland

Tax characteristics vary from country to country and sometimes even within a country.

Specific Cases

Belgium recently implemented a form of wealth tax that, unlike in other countries, only includes financial instruments held in an individual's securities accounts.

France abolished...

1. Introduction: The European Union

Important dates: 7 enlargements:
- UK, Ireland, Denmark (1973)
- Greece (1981)
- Portugal and Spain (1986)
- Finland, Sweden, Austria (1995)
- 10 countries (2004)
- Bulgaria and Romania (2007)
- Croatia (2013)

7 treaties:
1. Treaty of Paris (1950): European Coal and Steel Community
2. Treaty of Rome (1957): EURATOM, EEC, ECSC.
3. Treaty of the European Single Act (1986): the Single Market.
4. Treaty of Maastricht (1991): the Treaty of the EU.
5. Treaty of Amsterdam (1996)
6. Treaty of Nice (2001)
7. Treaty of Lisbon (2009)

1 downsizing: Brexit (2019-?)

Aspects of the European Integration Model - Mechanisms:
- Single market.
- Customs Union.
- Single currency.
- European institutions.
- Interterritorial cohesion policies.
- Common...

Balance Sheet Structure

Assets

Non-Current Assets

• Intangible Assets (Industrial property less Accumulated depreciation of intangible property)
• Property, Plant and Equipment (Buildings, furniture, and technical equipment less Accumulated depreciation)
• Investment Property (Investment buildings less Accumulated depreciation and Impairment of investment property)
• Non-Current Financial Assets (Non-current investments in equity instruments)
• Deferred Tax Assets

Current Assets

• Inventories (Merchandise less Impairment of merchandise plus Advances to suppliers)
• Trade and Other Receivables (Trade receivables, other receivables, and tax receivables less Impairment of trade receivables)
• Other Current Assets (Prepaid expenses)
• Current Financial Investments (Receivables

The Company Beta (β)

β = Cov(R_i, R_M) / Var(R_M)

Problems of Beta:

1. Betas may vary over time.
2. The sample size may be inadequate.
3. Betas are influenced by changing financial leverage and business risk.

Solutions:

1. Problems 1 and 2 can be moderated by more sophisticated statistical techniques.
2. Problem 3 can be lessened by adjusting for changes in business and financial risk.
3. Look at average beta estimates of several comparable firms in the industry.

Stability of Beta

Most analysts argue that betas are generally stable for firms remaining in the same industry, but they can change due to:

• Changes in product line
• Changes in technology
• Deregulation
• Changes in financial leverage

Using an Industry Beta

It is frequently argued that one can better estimate a firm's beta...

The Money Multiplier

With just a little mathematical manipulation, we can express the real-world money multiplier (m) as a function of the required reserve ratio (RRR), the excess-reserves ratio (ER/D), and the currency-deposit ratio (C/D). To find m, all we need are the values of the C/D and ER/D ratios. (We already know that RRR = .10, or 10%.) Alternatively, we could compute m with values for C, D, and ER.

Studying the multiplier effect is crucial because, unlike what basic economics states, the money supply is not fully controlled by the Fed. Instead, the Fed does have access to the monetary base, but the multiplier effect will depend on the monetary decisions of financial institutions and the general public.

Factors Affecting the Money Multiplier

Several...

The Medieval Economic Structure

Feudalism and the Agricultural Economy

During this period, society had an agricultural-based economy, combined with a feudal system. This system consisted of a king served by vassals (like dukes, counts, or barons) who gave him an oath of fealty in homage.

The Role and Regulation of Medieval Guilds

Industry revolved around guilds. These were centers of medieval "industrial" production—trade, professional, and craft organizations of Roman origin—and served as the "business units" of the Middle Ages. They functioned as a kind of exclusive union, though they were unions of masters, not workers.

Guilds regulated production and social conduct. Unlike a modern firm, the primary purpose of a guild was not first and foremost...

Government Favorability

Local > State > Federal. Government favorability has been on a decline since 2001.

Participation Correlation

• High Participation: Elections with high participation rates, a strong mayor form of government, and elections held concurrently with state and national elections.
• Large Cities: Culturally diverse cities.
• Controversial Topics: Low participation, the opposite of high participation.

Types of Local Governments

Numbers of Local Governments:

• The number of Special Districts has been on the rise.
• The number of School districts has decreased.
• The number of Municipalities, Townships, and Counties has stayed the same.

Functions of Local Governments

• Municipal: Woven throughout the others.
• County governments: Primarily for governing

Business Ethics

2) Business ethics (Business corruption/ Tax fraud/ Tax havens, crimes/ Politics and the economy)

Business ethics are moral principles that guide the way of a business behaviour.
Acting in an ethical way involves distinguishing between “right” and “wrong” and then making the “right” choice. As an ethical behaviour, company must avoid the pollution or the use of children for their activities. A measure for solve this is to make codes behaviour in the companies. Another type of business ethics is to pay the taxes and don't avoid it. Tax avoidance could be legal if a businessman finds a legal vacuum in the rules of the tax system, but the question is if it is ethical. Evidently, the answer is negative, as the spirit...

Quiz 8: Product Development & Distribution

1. The ______ step is the process of conducting market research on a potential product when engaging in the Product Development/Design process. EVALUATE

2. The CYL Yoga Studio is opening soon and needs to set up their product categories. All of the following will be labeled in the goods category EXCEPT: YOGA RETREATS

3. The Distribution Model represents all of the following EXCEPT: the flow of internationalization

4. ______ Model considers the logistics of having the right product in terms of the flow of information, innovation, compensation, and transaction costs. Miyazaki’s Distribution Approach

5. The ______ step is the process of determining the feasibility for a potential product when engaging in the Product