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marginal product
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the increase in output that arises from an additional unit of input
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When total product maximized
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Marginal product = zero
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diminishing marginal returns
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If at least one input is held fixed, while other inputs are variable, output increases at a diminishing rate
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fixed costs
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Costs that do not change with the rate of production
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Examples of a fixed cost
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rent and salaries
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variable costs
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costs that vary with the level of production
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Examples of variable costs
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Wages and utilities
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implicit costs
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Opportunity cost - what the business could have done with the money
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explicit costs
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Cash payments - costs that require a firm to spend money
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marginal cost
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The additional cost from hiring each additional unit of labor
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change in total cost / change in quantity
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Equation for marginal cost
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Fixed cost + variable cost
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Equation for total cost
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fixed cost / quantity
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Avg fixed cost equation
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Variable cost / quantity
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Avg variable cost equation
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Marginal cost graph
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...
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Does MC go through the bottom or top of ATC and AVC curves
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Bottom
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AVC gets closer to ATC as Quantity increases. What is this due to?
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AFC is falling as Q increases
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Diminishing marginal returns can be seen where on a MC graph
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When MC begins rising
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rule for short run
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At least one cost is held fixed
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Rule for Long run
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All costs are variable
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economies of scale
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as production increases, the long-run avg total cost decreases
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Constant returns to scale
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Shows long-run ATC. Remaining constant as output increases
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diseconomies of scale
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Long-run ATC curve increases as output increases. Basically the LATC is being driven up quantity produced is increasing.
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accounting profit
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total revenue minus total explicit cost
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economic profit
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total revenue minus total cost, including both explicit and implicit costs
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Accounting profit must be (larger or smaller) than economic profit
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Larger
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Why does accounting profit need to be larger than economic profit
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There is always opportunity costs
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normal profit = ? of Economic profit
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zero
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comparing marginal costs and marginal benefits
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how do firms attempt to maximize profit?
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where marginal revenue equals marginal cost
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In order to maximize profits, a perfect competitor will produce the quantity of output where
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as long as P > AVC or total revenue > TVC
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when will firms opporate in the short run?
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P < AVC in the long-run
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When will firms shut down?
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If there are profit-making opportunities
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When will firms enter a market?
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Up, because the total cost of the good will increase, meaning the cost-per-unit will increase.
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Will an increase in variable cost cause the marginal cost curve shift up or down? Why?
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Up, because you have to pay extra money for ever unit.
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Will a per-unit tax on a good cause the marginal cost curve to shift up or down? Why?
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Not change
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Do fixed costs cause the MC curve to shift up, down, or will it not change.
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Down
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If labor gets more productive in a firm, will the MC curve shift up, down, or not change?
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Down, because the cost for every unit decreases.
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If a per-unit subsidy is given to a firm, will the MC curve shift up, down, or neither? Why?
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Neither
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Does a lump-sum tax/subsidy cause the MC curve to shift up, down, or neither?
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lump sum subsidy
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Subsidy paid out in one payment, causing an increase in profit; it lowers the firm's fixed cost but DOES NOT change its marginal cost and will therefore not affect its profit maximizing output
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P = MC
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allocative efficiency
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Economic profit
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If ATC is below demand curve in a perfectly competitive market, will there be economic profit or loss?
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Loss
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If ATC is above demand curve in a perfectly competitive market, will there be economic profit or loss?
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Price-takers
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Are perfectly competitive firms price-takers or givers
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No
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Are there barriers to entry in a perfectly competitive firm?
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Yes, they don't have an opportunity cost.
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If a firm is making zero economic profit, are they still making money?
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increase
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If firms enter a market due to the existence of profit, will ATC increase, decrease, or not change if they are competing for resources?
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Bottom of ATC cost curve
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Where is productivity efficiency located on a graph?
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Price-makers
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Are imperfectly competitive firms price-takers or price-makers?
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Lower price
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In order to increase outputs, what must imperfectly competitive markets do?
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No, P must equal MC
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If price is greater than MC, will imperfectly competitive firms be able to produce at allocative efficient levels?
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Produce too little and charge too much
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From a societal standpoint, do imperfectly competitive markets produce too little or too much? And do they charge too high or too low a price?
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to keep other firms from entering the market
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Why do barriers to entry exist in a imperfectly competitive market?
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Patent
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(n.) exclusive rights over an invention; copyright
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Per unit tax
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What is a tax on each unit of a product sold and makes MC curve shift up?
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lump-sum tax
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a tax that is the same amount for every person and is a one time payment — makes the ATC curve shift up.
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Lump-sum subsidy
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Subsidy paid out in one payment, causing an increase in profit; it lowers the firm's fixed cost but DOES NOT change its marginal cost and will therefore not affect its profit maximizing output
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Decrease because it reduces the good's price.
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Does a subsidy given to a monopoly increase or decrease deadweight loss? Why?
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Decreases price and increase output
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a per unit subsidy (increase/decrease) price and (increase/decrease) output.
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MC shifts down
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How does a per unit subsidy affect the MC curve?
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economies of scale
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factors that cause a producer's average cost per unit to fall as output rises
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Yes
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In a natural monopoly, can governments regulate which price they can charge?
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Lump-sum subsidy
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What must be given to a natural monopoly in order to produce at an allocative efficient quantity?