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Three properties that are most important to remember:
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1) Marginal cost eventually rises with the quantity of output.
2) The average-total-cost curve is U-shaped.
3) The marginal-cost curve crosses the average-total-cost curve at the minimum of average total cost.
2) The average-total-cost curve is U-shaped.
3) The marginal-cost curve crosses the average-total-cost curve at the minimum of average total cost.
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Costs of Production
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if you know the technology of production, and if you know the prices of the inputs to production, then you can find the firm's costs at any level of output
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Total Costs=
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Fixed Costs + Variable Costs
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Average Costs
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cost per unit of output. Total cost divided by output (TC/Q)
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Average cost curve
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the curve that shows average cost as a function of output. Output is the independent variable and average cost is the dependent variable
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Average Fixed Cost=
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Total Fixed Cost/ Output
AFC= TFC/Q
AFC= TFC/Q
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Average Fixed Cost always ________ as output increases
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declines
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Average Variable Cost
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total variable cost/output
AVC= VC/Q
AVC= VC/Q
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Average Total Cost
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equals Total Cost divided by Output
ATC= TC/Q
ATC= TC/Q
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TC =
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FC + VC
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ATC =
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AFC+ AVC
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Marginal Cost
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the change in total cost per unit change in output, the slope of the total cost curve
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Marginal Cost curve
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the curve that shows marginal cost as a function of output
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AC curve is always __ -shaped
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U-shaped
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MC eventually ______
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rises, due to the Law of Diminishing Returns.
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Shapes on Cost Curves
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1) When MC < AC, AC is falling
2) When MC > AC, AC is rising
3) When MC = AC, AC = MC
2) When MC > AC, AC is rising
3) When MC = AC, AC = MC
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MC rises when ____ falls, as more is produced
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MP (Marginal Product)
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Costs in the Long-run
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All inputs are variable, long run is a series of short run opportunities
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Economies of Scale
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Declining Long-run curve
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Diseconomies of Scale
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Rising Long-run curve
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Reasons for Economies of Scale
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specialization and division of labor
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Reasons for Diseconomies
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Coordination, organization, and communication is inefficient
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The firm's efficient scale is the quantity of output that minimizes
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Average Total Cost
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One assumption that distinguishes short-run cost analysis from long-run cost analysis for a profit-maximizing firm is that in the short run,
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the size of a factory is fixed
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When comparing short-run average total cost with long-run average total cost at a given level of output,
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short-run average total cost is typically above long-run average total cost.
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The most likely explanation for economies of scale is
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specialization of labor
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Firms may experience diseconomies of scale when
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large management structures are bureaucratic and inefficient