Econ This Is
Econ This Is
Econ This Is
Allocative Efficiency & Competitive Equilibrium Pareto Efficiency A condition in which no change is possible that will make some members of society better off without making some other members of society worse off Revisiting Consumer & Producer Products
The Efficiency of Perfect Competition All societies answer these basic questions in the design of their economic systems: 1. What gets produced? 2. How is it produced? 3. Who gets what is produced? Efficiency uses these three questions & their answers to prove informally that perfect competition is efficient Under perfect competition o Resources are allocated among firms efficiently o Final products are distributed among households efficiently o System produces the things that people want
Efficient Allocations of Resources Among Firms Firms face the same price (input price) in the factor market The assumptions that factor markets are competitive and open, that all firms pay the same prices for input, & that all firms maximize profits lead to the conclusion that the allocation of resources among firms is efficient Efficient Distribution of Outputs Among Households Everybody can buy what they want Free & open markets are essential to this result Producing What People Want: The Efficient Mix of Output P=MC o P=willingness to pay o MC=opportunity cost of resources needed to produce output Lets say we have good X o Px > MCx Society gains value by producing more of good X o Px < MCx Society gains value by producing less of good X o Society will produce the efficient mix of output if all firms equate price and marginal cost
The Sources of Market Failure Market failure: occurs when resources are misallocated, or allocated inefficiently. The result is waste or lost value Four important sources of market failure 1. imperfect market structure, or noncompetitive behavior 2. the existence of public goods 3. the presence of external costs & benefits 4. imperfect information Imperfect Markets P does not = MC (does not have to hold) EQUALS: o Market power o Firms will not be price takers o Efficient mix of output is not guaranteed We have limited number of firms Public Goods Goods & services that bestow collective benefits on members of society No one can be excluded from enjoying their benefits Examples o National defense (classic) o Police protection o Homeland security
o Preservation of wilderness lands o Public health Externalities A cost or benefit imposed or bestowed on an individual or a group that is outside, or external to, the transaction Examples o Air or water pollution (classic) o Noise o Congestion o Your house painted a color that neighbors think is ugly Imperfect Information The absence of full knowledge concerning product characteristics, available prices, & so on
Chapter 13
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Why MR is always below its price? We assume that the monopolist must sell all its product at a single price (no price discrimination) To raise output & sell it, the firm must lower the price it changes
Marginal Revenue and Total Revenue A monopolys marginal revenue curve bisects the quantity axis between the origin & the point where the demand curve hits the quantity axis. A monopolys MR curve shows the change in total revenue that results as a firm moves along the segment of the demand curve that lies exactly above it
Perfect Competition & Monopoly Compared In a perfectly competitive industry in the long run, price will be equal to long-run average cost. The market supply curve is the sum of all the short-run marginal cost curves of the firms in the industry. Here we assume the firms are using a technology that exhibits constant returns to scale: LRAC is flat. Big firms enjoy no cost advantages.
Comparison of Monopoly & Perfectly Competitive Outcomes for a Firm w/ Constant Returns to Scale In the newly organized monopoly, the marginal cost curve is the same as the supply that represented the behavior of all the independent firms when the industry was organized competitively. Quantity produced by the monopoly will be less than the perfectly competitive level of output, & the monopoly price will be higher than the price under perfect competition. o Under monopoly, P = Pm = $4 and Q = Qm = 2,500 o Under perfect competition, P = Pc = $3 and Q = Qc = 4,000
Ownership of a Scarce Factor of Production Diamond (natural) o The ownership of a scarce factor of production is a barrier to entry
Economies of Scale Natural monopoly: an industry that realizes such large economies of scale in producing that single-firm production of that good or service is most efficient The most efficient production will be close to the demand curve
Price Discrimination
Price discrimination: charging different prices to different buyers Perfect price discrimination: occurs when a firm charges the maximum amount that buyers are willing to pay for each unit
With perfect price discrimination, there is no DWL, but also no consumer surplus Monopolist will actually produce the efficient quantity of output (Qc) Demand curve becomes same as marginal revenue o When a firm can charge the max that anyone is willing to pay for each unit, that price is marginal revenue
Examples of Price Discrimination 1. Movie discount for senior citizens, students, & children 2. Airline discounts for Saturday night stay overs 3. Airline tickets for different classes (economic, business, etc) 4. LSU football ticket discounts for students Remedies for Monopoly: Anti-trust Policy Major Antitrust Legislation The Sherman Act of 1890 1911 there are 2 companies sued by violating the Sherman Act o Standard oil %91 o American Tobacco %75- %90 GUILTY o Why guilty? Because both of them used tough tactics to prevent competition Summary Monopolist are unjust because they restrict freedom to enter business Monopolist transfer income from deserving consumers to underserving monopolists Monopolist output is lower & price is higher than in competitive markets Because monopolies reduce output & charge P > MC, monopolies create a welfare loss for society A price discriminating monopolist earns more profit than a normal monopolist by charging different prices In a natural monopoly the competitive outcome where P=MC results in losses