ECON 306 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Economic Equilibrium, Profit Maximization, Economic Surplus

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6 Mar 2017

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This week we will be covering chapter 8 out of the text. This chapter continues our discussion on producer theory- but looks at how firms make decisions about the quantity they choose to produce (rather than the quantity of inputs they use in production). We assume that firms are seeking to maximize profits and come up with profit maximizing conditions. We will also start differentiate between firms in different types of market structures, and begin are comparison of different market types. To sum up, last week: firm choose inputs to minimize costs, this week: firm choose the level of output to maximize profits. There are three basic assumptions of competitive markets: price taking: the decisions of one firm have no impact on the market price because it makes up such a small share of the total market output. Thus perfectly competitive firms take prices as given.

Related Questions

32. Which of the following is not a difference between monopolies and perfectly competitive markets?

A. Monopolies face downward sloping demand curves while perfectly competitive firms face horizontal demand curves.

B. Monopolies charge a price higher than marginal cost while perfectly competitive firms charge a price equal to marginal cost.

C. Monopolies can earn profits in the long run while perfectly competitive firms break even.

D. Monopolies choose to produce the quantity at which marginal revenue equals marginal cost while perfectly competitive firms do not.

40. Which of the following statements is not correct?

A. Both monopolies and monopolistically competitive firms can earn economic profits in the long run.

B. Both monopolistically competitive and perfectly competitive firms can earn economic profits in the short run.

C. Only competitive firms produce the welfare-maximizing level of output.

D. Firms in perfect competition, monopolistic competition, and monopoly maximize profits by producing where marginal revenue equals marginal cost.

43. A monopolistically competitive firm is currently producing 20 units of output. At this level of output the firm is charging a price equal to $20, has marginal revenue equal to $12, has marginal cost equal to $12, and has average total cost equal to $18. From this information we can infer that

A. the profits of the firm are negative.

B. firms are likely to leave this market in the long run.

C. the firm is currently maximizing its profit.

D. All of the above are correct.

PROFIT MAXIMIZATION

Reminders:

Q: Quantity, TC: Total Costs, VC: Variable Costs, MC: Marginal Costs, MR: Marginal Revenue, TR: Total Revenue

1. Suppose the market for DVD movies is perfectly competitive. The industry price for the movies is $24, and a typical firm has the following total cost data:

Q	TC	VC	MC	MR	TR	Net Profit
0	10
1	33
2	53
3	70
4	90
5	114
6	143

a. Calculate the TR, MR, and MC for each level of output.

b. What condition must be met for the firm to maximize profits? What is the profit maximizing level of output and price for this firm? How much profit would be made?

2. Now suppose that some firms have been able to differentiate their DVDs, and the market has become monopolistically competitive. A typical firm now has the following demand schedule and total cost data:

Q	P	TC	VC	MC	MR	TR	Net Profit
0	40	8
1	35	20
2	30	28
3	25	40
4	20	56
5	15	76
6	10	100

a. Calculate the TR, MR, and MC for each level of output.

b. What condition must be met for the firm to maximize profits? What is the profit maximizing level of output and price for this firm? How much profit would be made?

1. All of the following are characteristics of long-run equilibrium for firms in a monopolistically competitive market except:

A. price equals marginal cost.

B. price equals average total cost.

C. price exceeds the minimum of the average total cost.

D. marginal cost equals marginal revenue.

2. All of the following are strategies a firm with market power can adopt to increase its profits over time except:

A. erecting barriers to entry.

B. setting price equal to the marginal costs of production.

C. mergers with, and acquisitions of, competing firms.

D. influencing the regulatory process.

3. Assume that for a particular firm's output price = $80, marginal cost = $30, average total cost = $25. Based on this information, the firm's Lerner Index is equal to:

A. 0.313.

B. 0.625.

C. 0.6.

D. 0.375.

4. Assume that when the price is $20, the quantity demanded is 9 units, and when the price is $19, the quantity demanded is 10 units. Based on this information, what is the marginal revenue resulting from an increase in output from 9 units to 10 units?

A. $10

B. $1

C. $19

D. $20

5. Because firms produce a differentiated product, each of the firms in a monopolistically competitive market faces a demand curve that is:

A. perfectly elastic.

B. downward sloping.

C. perfectly inelastic.

D. perfectly elastic or perfectly inelastic depending on whether the firm's output is a luxury or a necessity.

6. Suppose a monopolist is producing a level of output such that MR > MC. What should the firm do to maximize its profits?

A. The firm should increase output.

B. The firm should increase the price.

C. The firm should do nothing - it wants to maximize the difference between MR and MC in order to maximize its profits.

D. The firm should hire less labor.

7. Suppose the firms in a monopolistically competitive market are earning positive economic profits. What will happen to move the market to its long-run equilibrium?

A. The demand curves faced by firms in the market will shift to the right.

B. The firms' demand curves will become less elastic.

C. More close substitutes will appear in the market.

D. Some firms will exit the market if they can't cover all of their fixed and variable costs.

8. The Lerner Index is a measure of market power that focuses on:

A. the difference between a firm's product price and its marginal costs of production.

B. the share of the market controlled by the X largest firms in the market.

C. the ratio of the price of a firm's product to the price elasticity of demand for the product.

D. the sum of the squares of the market share of each firm in an industry.

9. The measure of market power that focuses on the share of the market controlled by the X largest firms in the market is known as:

A. the Lerner Index.

B. the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index.

C. the Minimum-Efficient Scale Index.

D. a concentration ratio.

10. The monopoly characteristic of monopolistically competitive firms ensures that such firms will earn positive economic profits over the long-run.

a. True

b. False

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ECON 306 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Economic Equilibrium, Profit Maximization, Economic Surplus

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