ECO 1104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: The Beer Store, Marginal Cost, Marginal Product

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Distinction between the fixed costs and the variable costs of production. Variable costs increase with the level of production. Fixed costs remain constant with the level of production. In order to make the transition from the physical productivity to the costs of production, consider the following numerical illustration: Suppose that the going wage for labor (the one variable factor) is /hour. Suppose that the schedule for the marginal product of labor is: first worker = 10 unit/hour: second worker = 10, third worker = 8 fourth worker = 7. Note the pattern the mp of labor is decreasing due to the diminishing mp, while the wage remains constant. This implies diminishing marginal product translates into increasing per unit production costs. The tp and the mp are functions of the level of input of the variable factor, the cost functions are function of the level of output, q. These increases directly with the level of production.

Related Questions

1. When economists speak of "marginal," they mean
a. Opportunity.
b. Scarcity.
c. Incremental.
d. Unimportant.

2. Managers undertake an investment only if
a. Marginal benefits of the investment are greater than zero.
b. Marginal costs of the investment are greater than marginal benefits of the investment.
c. Marginal benefits are greater than marginal costs.
d. Investment decisions do not depend on marginal analysis.

3. A firm produces 500 units per week. It hires 20 full-time workers (40 hours/week) at an hourly wage of $15. Raw materials are ordered weekly, and they cost $10 for every unit produced. The weekly cost of the rent payment for the factory is $2,250. How do the overall costs break down?
a. Total variable cost is $17,000; total fixed cost is $2,250; total cost is $19,250.
b. Total variable cost is $12,000; total fixed cost is $7,250; total cost is $19,250.
c. Total variable cost is $5,000; total fixed cost is $14,250; total cost is $19,250.
d. Total variable cost is $5,000; total fixed cost is $2,250; total cost is $7,250.

4. Total costs increase from $1,500 to $1,800 when a firm increases output from 40 to 50 units. Which of the following is true if marginal cost is constant?
a. FC = $100
b. FC = $200
c. FC = $300
d. FC = $400

5. A manager of a clothing firm is deciding whether to add another factory in addition to one already in production. The manager would compare
a. The total benefits gained from the two factories to the total costs of running the two factories.
b. The incremental benefit expected from the second factory to the total costs of running the two factories.
c. The incremental benefit expected from the second factory to the cost of the second factory.
d. The total benefits gained from the two factories to the incremental costs of running the two factories.

6. A firm is thinking of hiring an additional worker to their organization who they believe can increase total productivity by 100 units a week. The cost of hiring him or her is $1,500 per week. If the price of each unit is $12,
a. The MR of hiring the worker is $1,500.
b. The MC of hiring the worker is $1,200.
c. The firm should not hire the worker since MB < MC.
d. All the above

7. A retailer has to pay $9 per hour to hire 13 workers. If the retailer only needs to hire 12 workers, a wage rate of $7 per hour is sufficient.
What is the marginal cost of the 13th worker?
a. $117
b. $9
c. $33
d. $84

8. If a firm's average cost is rising, then
a. Marginal cost is less than average cost.
b. Marginal cost is rising.
c. Marginal cost is greater than average cost.
d. The firm is making an economic profit.

9. After the first week of his MBA Managerial Economics class, one of your pharmaceutical sales representatives accuses you of committing the sunk-cost fallacy by refusing to allow him to reduce price to make what he considers to be a really tough sale. Which of the following suggests the sales representative may be right?
a. Most of the costs of drug development are sunk, not fixed.
b. Sales representatives are paid a sales commission on revenue, so they don't care about the costs of drug development.
c. Sales representatives don't worry that a low price today may make it more difficult for the company's other sales representatives to charge higher prices to their customers, tomorrow.
d. Sales representatives think only about one thing, sales.

10. A company is producing 15,000 units. At this output level, marginal revenue is $22, and the marginal cost is $18. The firm sells each unit for $48 and average total cost is $40.
What can we conclude from this information?
a. The company is making a loss.
b. The company needs to cut production.
c. The company needs to increase production.
d. Not enough information is provided.

Suppose the process of producing lightweight parkas by Polly's Parkas is described by the function:

q = 40K^0.6 (L-40)^0.4

where q is the number of parkas produced, K the number of computerized stitching-machine hours, and L the number of person-hours of labor. In addition to capital and labor, $10 worth of raw materials are used in the production of each parka.

Note that Eq/EK = 40(0.6) K ^-0.40 (L-40)^0.4 and Eq/EL = 40K ^0.6 (0.4) (L-40) ^-0.60

By minimizing cost subject to the production function, derive the cost-minimizing demands for K and L as a function of output (q), wage rates (w), and rental rates of machines (r).

The cost-minimizing demands for K and L are:

Use these results to derive the total cost function: that is, costs as a function of q, r, w, and the constant $10 per unit materials cost. The total cost function (TC) is:

2. This process requires skilled workers, who earn $64 per hour. The rental rate on the machines used in the process is $16 per hour. At these factor prices, what are total costs as a function of q.

Total costs (TC) are:

Does the technology exhibit decreasing, constant, or increasing returns to scale?

3. Polly's Parkas plans to produce 2000 parkas per week. At the factor prices given above, how many workers should the firm hire (at 40 hours per week) and how many machines should it rent?

The firm should use ___ worker hours.

The firm should use ___ machine hours.

What are the marginal and average costs at this level of production?

Marginal cost is $___ per unit of output.

Average cost is $___ .

bronzehornet861

Question 1

A firm should hire workers up to the point where

Question 1 options:

	MP = P.
	MFC = P.
	MFC = MRP.
	MP = MRP.

Question 2

If the additional revenue from hiring an additional worker equals the additional costs from hiring the extra worker, then we know that

Question 2 options:

	MFC/MPP_L = wage.
	MFC/MRP_L = 1.
	MFC = MPP_L.
	MRP_L/P = MFC.

Question 3

A firm that maximizes profits also

Question 3 options:

	pays input prices lower than other firms do.
	cuts corners in production processes so that its products are made too cheaply.
	is inefficient.
	uses the least-cost combination of resources.

Question 4

The demand curve for labor slopes down because

Question 4 options:

	firms value less efficient workers less than they value more efficient workers.
	firms must lower prices to sell the additional units of its product that the extra workers produce.
	of profit maximizing behavior.
	of the law of diminishing marginal product.

Question 5

If MFC > MRP_L, the firm should

Question 5 options:

	get rid of some capital.
	reduce the number of workers.
	lower wages.
	hire more workers.

Question 6

Which of the following will not lead to an increase in the demand for labor for a firm producing automobiles?

Question 6 options:

	A decrease in labor productivity.
	A decrease in the price of automobiles.
	A decrease in the price of robots that are used to solder parts of the car together.
	An increase in the demand for automobiles.

Question 7

The marginal revenue product gives

Question 7 options:

	the additions to total cost when an additional unit of a variable input is hired.
	the additional revenue obtained when an additional unit of a variable input is hired.
	the change in total product for an additional unit of a variable input.
	the amount that other inputs must increase by when labor increase by one unit.

Question 8

The monopolist's input demand curve is the

Question 8 options:

	marginal physical product curve.
	marginal revenue product curve.
	marginal revenue curve.
	marginal factor cost.

Question 9

An increase in product price implies that

Question 9 options:

	the firm's demand for labor increases.
	the firm's demand for labor decreases.
	the wage rate the firm pays will increase.
	the firm's marginal factor cost will increase.

Question 10

Which of the following will not lead to a change in the demand for labor?

Question 10 options:

	A change in the supply of labor.
	A change in demand for the final good.
	A change in the price of a substitute input.
	A change in labor productivity.

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ECO 1104 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: The Beer Store, Marginal Cost, Marginal Product

ECO 1104 Full Course Notes

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