ECON 2304 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Comparative Advantage, Absolute Advantage, Opportunity Cost

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indigoarmadillo66

3 Sep 2016

School

University of Houston

Department

Economics

Course

ECON 2304

Professor

Yewande Olapade

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Document Summary

Focus how trade can make everyone better off: buyers buy for less than if they produce themselves, sellers sell for a price that will give them a profit. Will learn why people/nations choose to be interdependent: and how they can gain from trade. Example: us and japan: produce computers and wheat, one resource: labor, measured in hours. Step 1: look at how much of both goods each country produces and consumes. Us"s ppf: us has 50,000 hours of labor available for production, per month, 1 computer = 100 hours of labor. Producing only computers = 500 computers: 1 ton of wheat = 10 hours of labor. 250 computers and 2500 tons of wheat. Japan"s ppf: japan has 30,000 hours of labor available for production, per month, 1 computer = 125 hours of labor. Producing only computers = 240 computers: 1 ton of wheat = 25 hours of labor. 120 computers and 600 tons of wheat.

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2) Kenya and Uzbekistan each produce textiles and steel using labor as their only resource. Each country has 1,000 hours of labor. In Kenya, 1 hour produces 1 ream of textiles and it takes 2 hours to produce 1 ton of steel. In Uzbekistan, 1 hour produces 1 ream of textiles and it takes 3 hours to produce 1 ton of steel. When they do not trade with each other, Kenya consumes 750 reams of textiles and 125 tons of steel, Uzbekistan consumes 500 reams of textiles and 166.67 tons of steel.

a) How much of each product does each country produce in 1 hour?

b) Which country has the absolute advantage in textile production?

c) What is the price of steel in Uzbekistan before the two countries begin to trade with each other?

d) In order for Kenya to gain from trade, what must the price of textiles be less than?

e) At what price will Uzbekistan's gains from the trade of textiles be the largest?

f) What is the opportunity cost of a ton of steel in Kenya?

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Question 6: Which of the following economic goals focuses on equal opportunities for education? (5 points)

-Equity

-Freedom

-Growth

-Security

Question 7: Marcel takes out student loans and works part-time to put himself through college. In time, he earns an advanced medical degree and goes to work in an understaffed city -hospital. Marcel's economic decisions benefit the goal of efficiency by (5 points)

-making his own job

-related decisions

-paying back loans to reduce the debt

-contributing to the nation's productivity

-taking advantage of equal opportunities

Question 8: Two countries produce milk and dairy products efficiently. Neither has an absolute advantage. However, Country A exports milk to Country B, and Country A imports cotton from Country B. Which of the following is inferred? (5 points)

-The opportunity cost of producing milk is lower for Country A.

-The opportunity cost of producing cotton is higher for Country B.

-Country A has a natural resource advantage in cotton.

-Country B has a natural resource advantage in milk.

Question 9: Worker hours to produce one unit of natural gas; Worker hours to produce one unit of oil; Brazil 4 9; Argentina 2 10; Mexico 3 7; United States 1 6. According to the chart, which country has the comparative advantage in oil production? (5 points)

-Brazil

-Mexico

-Argentina

-United States

Question 10: The United States can manufacture books at a much more rapid pace than manufacturers in Indonesia. Which of the following is a reason? (5 points)

-Indonesia, as a developed country, has a highly paid and experienced workforce

-Indonesia, as a developing country, has a less advanced manufacturing infrastructure

-The United States, as a developing country, has a high comparative advantage in manufacturing.

-The United States, as a developed country, has a lower cost of living than Indonesia

Question 11: A group of nations establishes a free-trade zone. What is the most likely effect? (5 points)

-Cost of trade increases

-Exports decrease

-Imports decrease

-Trade increases

Question 12: The United States may have a tariff on cotton products from China in order to (5 points)

-prevent Chinese manufacturers from losing profit because of low prices

-protect the business of the American cotton growers and manufacturers

-stop trade due to political disagreement on economic policy

-promote sales in the United States of cotton products from China

Question 13: A Chinese international salesperson hoping to increase exports to the U.S. may worry about the inflation of the U.S. dollar because the inflation may (5 points)

-increase the United States' supply of Chinese products

-decrease tariffs on Chinese products sold to the United States

-increase taxes on the United States' products sold to China

-reduce the United States' demand for Chinese products

Question 14: How would a strong U.S. dollar impact the trade of grain produced in the United States? (5 points)

-U.S. grain exports decrease

-U.S. grain exports increase

-U.S. grain imports decrease

-U.S. grain imports stagnate

Question 15: Which of these can be a result of inflation? (5 points)

-Businesses grow cautious about spending

-The government has to cut spending

-The price of household items increases

-Workers benefit from a lower cost of living

Question 16: If the inflation rate increases faster than their income, people will most likely (5 points)

-use a higher proportion of their incomes on basic needs

-spend a lower proportion of their incomes on basic needs

-get more goods and services for less money

-obtain fewer goods and services for less money

Question 17: To increase your standard of living, your wages must (5 points)

-rise faster than the inflation rate

-rise more slowly than the inflation rate

-keep pace with the inflation rate

-have a negative inflation rate

Question 18: Look at the map showing the European Union (EU) and its free-trade agreement (FTA) countries. Which is true about most current EU free-trade agreements? (5 points)

-The European Union's free-trade agreements are with all of the most developed nations in the world.

-The European Union's free-trade agreements include agreements with both developed and developing nations.

-The European Union's free-trade agreements focus on nations with access to overland trade routes

-The European Union's free-trade agreements focus on the Southern Hemisphere, as distant countries have access to goods not grown in Europe.

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We hear so much about the depletion of the ozone, the destruction of the rain forest, the pollution of the oceans and rivers, and the depletion of wildlife because

a. private individuals and businesses lack the time to take full account of these issues.

b. private individuals and businesses donï¿½t care about our environment.

c. scientists are looking to make names for themselves and thereby gain a lot of publicity.

d. the media focuses on negative stories.

e. private individuals and businesses lack incentives to take full account of the consequences of their actions.

4. An externality exists when

a. some of the costs of producing a product affect people unable, within a market system, to influence how much of a product should be produced.

b. only the buyers and sellers are affected by the production of a product or service.

c. every person in a market system has a chance to influence how much of a product should be produced.

d. the benefits from consuming the service affect only the purchasers of that service.

e. the costs of producing a service affect only the sellers of that service.

Why are chickens and cows not listed on the endangered species list?

a. People want to eat chickens and cows.

b. People cannot own a chicken or a cow.

c. Chickens and cows reproduce regularly.

d. Private property rights exist for chicken and cows.

e. People will pay to have chicken or beef.

10. Public radio raises its funding by staging telethons where no programs are aired for a period of time as the station solicits contributions. The stations have trouble raising money because

a. the government assigns private property rights to goods.

b. the consumption of a good cannot be limited to the person who purchased it.

c. the broadcasts are private.

d. people do not act in their own self-interest.

e. a monopoly produces a good.

The United States is a major trading partner for many nations because of the

a. size of the U.S. economy and its relatively high level of income.

b. free market benefits of capitalism.

c. commitment of the United States to help immigrants by both importing from and exporting to their countries of origin.

d. active participation of the United States in both the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

e. protection to shipping offered by the U.S. strategic presence in vital commercial areas, such as the Middle East.

18. Which of the following statements about international trade restrictions is true?

a. They typically benefit foreign producers at the expense of domestic consumers.

b. They ensure that countries will specialize in those products which they can produce most efficiently.

c. In the majority of cases they harm consumers.

d. They ensure that only efficient producers survive.

e. They ensure that higher-quality goods are provided at lower prices.

ECON 2304 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Comparative Advantage, Absolute Advantage, Opportunity Cost

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