FOCUS ARTICLE>> Economics/Supply-Demand-Price
Surging Oil Prices Bite Demand
by: By Benoit Faucon and James Herron
Date: Apr 13, 2011SUMMARY: The highest oil prices in 2½ years have begun to trigger some deterioration in demand, oil producers and consumers said, a surprising fallout from the disruption in oil production that has resulted from unrest in the Middle East.
via www.env-econ.net
Posted at 08:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
My guess is that, if there is money to be made, a second firm will enter the market in less time than that if there is free entry. However, if the state has thrown up entry barriers, we can expect high prices for a few years.
Note to self: reblog this on the MBA blog -- it would make a cool market structure example.
via www.env-econ.net
Posted at 08:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Enjoy: Priceless
Posted at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Grades are posted with experiment #2 replacing your lowest homework grade and a zero for the last day of class. In your overall average grade, each exam is worth 33.33% and the assignments are worth 33.33%.
The average on the final exam is 92. The overall average is 88. If everyone gets full credit for the last day of class assignment the overall average will be 91.
Posted at 04:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
As retailers have been warning, their costs are rising as cotton and other materials get more expensive, laborers in China demand higher wages and fuel prices go up. By this fall, many have said, they must charge customers more. Because retailers pay for items about six months in advance, spring merchandise on the shelves for a few months was ordered and paid for in late summer, before costs soared. And when costs first started creeping up, clothing makers used an array of tactics to keep prices flat, whether by moving production to lower-cost countries like Bangladesh, using cheaper fabrics or ordering early to lock in prices.
By this time, though, retailers are running out of ways to avoid passing on the higher expenses. An uptick has quietly begun.
Companies are “raising prices, but are trying not to broadcast it for competitive reasons, and it also doesn’t look good for public relations reasons,” said John D. Morris, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets.
“They’re doing it before they’re actually incurring some of the higher costs,” Mr. Morris said, adding that steeper increases will mainly occur in the fall and winter.
Several stores have couched recent increases inside promotions, or nudged price tags up by a little under 10 percent, the point at which many shoppers’ radar picks up on the move. For example, at American Eagle Outfitters, the price of striped polo shirts was raised about a week ago to $34.50, up from $29.50. At Brooks Brothers, a wrinkle-free shirt is $88, up from $79.50 in January.
The increases have not been imposed from rack to rack. Retailers and analysts say stores are testing to see where customers will accept higher prices. Will shoppers accept more expensive jeans, but revolt if the price of T-shirts rises? Will they stop buying socks if the price goes up by 50 cents? What about $3?
via www.nytimes.com
Posted at 09:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
From the inbox:
Is the test online tonight or are we having class?
Answer: Online ... I'll post the exam around 5:45 and you'll have until 10 pm to submit your answers via email.
Posted at 04:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
4.
a. Player 1 uses strategy A, player 2 uses strategy C
b. No, the players have an incentive to use strategies A and C each period
c. Using formula appropriate for zero profits in noncooperative outcome:
c. Using formula appropriate for positive profits in noncooperative outcome:
The cooperative equilibrium yields higher profits than cheating and the one shot Nash equilibrium where profits equal 10
Posted at 05:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
