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

Microeconomics: Supply and Demand

Market Fundamentals

Supply and demand are fundamental concepts in economics, driving market dynamics. Modern microeconomics focuses on these forces and their impact on market equilibrium.

Markets

A market consists of buyers and sellers interacting to exchange goods or services. Buyer behavior determines demand, while seller behavior determines supply.

Types of Markets

Competitive Market

A competitive market involves numerous buyers and sellers, preventing any single entity from controlling the price. Prices fluctuate within a narrow range, balancing the interests of buyers and sellers.

Perfect and Imperfect Competition

Perfect Competition

Characterized by identical products, numerous buyers and sellers, and no individual...

Crisis Management

What is a Crisis?

A crisis is an extraordinary event or series of events that negatively impact an organization's product integrity, reputation, or financial stability, or the health and welfare of workers, the community, or the general public.

Examples of Crises:

• Product recall
• Plane crash
• Public sexual harassment complaint
• Hostage situation
• Product contamination
• Market/stock crash
• Indefinite strike
• Lawsuits

Crises are not always unexpected. Often, the organization is aware of the situation before the public.

Types of Crisis Responses

1. Defensive Responses

These are less effective if the organization is held responsible for the crisis.

a. Attacking the Accuser

This involves questioning the crisis's validity, challenging the logic and facts...

Defining Financial Management and Its Objectives

Definition of Financial Management

Financial Management is the strategic planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of a firm's financial activities. It involves applying general management principles to the financial resources of the enterprise to ensure the efficient acquisition and optimal utilization of funds to achieve the firm's overall goals.

It answers three fundamental questions for the business:

• Investment Decision (Deployment): Where should the firm invest its funds for the long term? (Capital Budgeting)
• Financing Decision (Procurement): Where should the firm raise the required funds, and in what proportion? (Capital Structure)
• Dividend Decision (Distribution): How should the firm

The purpose of economy is production of conditions and services for consumption now or in the future.

Evaluate and Select Suppliers

The most important duty of purchasing is the right to evaluate and select suppliers. This is what purchasing personnel are trained to do.

The selection decision in sourcing teams requires that members reach a consensus in selecting suppliers.

Review Specifications

The authority to review material specifications is also within purchasing’s span of control.

Purchasing should also lead or coordinate negotiations with suppliers. This means that purchasing retains the right to control the overall process, act as an agent to commit an organization to a legal agreement, and negotiate a purchase price.

E-Procurement and the Procure-to-Pay Process

We examine in detail the purchasing process, which includes all the steps that...

Consolidated Financial Statements

When Consolidated Financial Statements Cannot Be Compiled

Determine when a parent entity, which is itself a subsidiary, is *not* required to prepare consolidated financial statements:

• When the ultimate parent entity produces consolidated general-purpose financial statements that comply with full IFRSs or with IFRS for SMEs.
• When an entity has no subsidiaries other than one that was acquired with the intention of selling or disposing of it within one year.

Presumption of Control

Identify the circumstances under which control is presumed to exist:

• When the parent owns, directly or indirectly through subsidiaries, more than half of the voting power of an entity.
• When the parent owns half or less of the voting power of

Pricing Studies:

Research can be used to evaluate alternative price approaches for new products before launch or for any proposed changes in prices.

Gabor and Grainger Method:

Different prices for a product are presented to respondents who are then asked if they would buy. A 'buy-response' curve of different prices, with the corresponding number of affirmative purchase intentions, is produced.

Multibrand-Choice Method:

Respondents are shown different sets of brands in the same product category, at different prices, and are asked which they would buy.

Research for profit-oriented pricing

Research for share-oriented pricing

Quantitative approaches

Market Potential:

Maximum total sales level that can be reached in a certain market. It contributes to the...

Supporting Sentences

Supporting sentences either explain or prove the topic sentence. They provide details and summarize what has been said, particularly towards the end of the paragraph. Supporting details could be examples, statistics, or quotations.

About the Essay Topic

The essay topic should be focused:

• It doesn't have to be too general or too narrow.
• The title should be a noun phrase, not a sentence or a non-clause; it can contain a gerund, but not a true verb.
• It should indicate the narrow topic of the paper.
• It shouldn't be ambiguous and use only standard English word forms.
• It should summarize the main idea.

Drafting

Freewriting

Freewriting is writing about a topic, focusing on identifying main ideas, supporting points, etc.

Other Techniques

• List-

Types of Inventory Costs

Ordering Costs (Setup Costs, Replenishment Costs): Expenses incurred every time an order is placed.

• Examples: Order processing fees, clerical costs for invoice processing, amortization of the EDI system.

Carrying Costs (Holding Costs): Costs associated with storing inventory.

• Examples: Storage space rental, insurance, utilities, and inventory management software.

Stock-out Costs (Shortage Costs): Expenses arising from inventory shortages.

• Examples: Lost sales, expedited shipping costs, and damage to customer relationships.

III. Inventory Cost: Ordering Costs

1. Order Processing Costs

• Fixed cost, independent of the order quantity.
• Includes fees for placing orders, clerical costs for invoice processing, and amortization of the

Key Accounting Terms

• Entries: Journal analysis of the effects of a transaction on the accounts, usually accompanied by an explanation of the transaction.
• Ledger: Single accounts kept updated by posting. Each is recorded with one debit and one credit.
• Assets: Resources controlled by the entity as a result of past events and from which future economic benefits are expected to flow to the entity.
• Liabilities: Obligations of the enterprise arising from past events, expected to result in an outflow from the enterprise of resources embodying economic benefits.
• Equity: What is left of the assets after liabilities are deducted. Capital or owner's interest, withdrawals.
• Expenses: Amounts that have been paid or will be paid for costs that have been incurred