Ch2微观经济学

• Individual preferences; natural ability • Experience • No need to shift between tasks • Laborsaving machinery 劳工保存的体系
– Downside:
• Repetitive, tedious 重复的单调的 • Routine tasks - robots
13
Efficiency and the PPF
• Production Possibilities Frontier (PPF) • Assumptions
– Output: consumer and capital goods资本货物 – Production: 1 year – Fixed resources (quantity, quality) – Fixed technology – Fixed ‘rules of the game’ • Resources - scarce for the economy • Economy’s production options
5
Law of Comparative Advantage
• Specialize in the task that you do better • Law of comparative advantage 相对优势
– Specialize in producing a good IF – Lower opportunity cost of producing it • Specialization and exchange – Better off 比较富裕 • Absolute advantage 绝对的优势 – Use fewer resources
12 minutes
One hour I term paper 1 term paper
3 shirts
No shirts
Opp. Cost to 3 shirts type 1 paper
5 shirts
Opp. Cost to 1/3 term
1/5 term
iron 1 shirt paper
Chapter 2
Economic Tools and
Economic Systems
Choice and Opportunity Cost
• Scarcity • Make a choice
– Pass up another opportunity • Opportunity cost
– The value of the best alternative forgone – Opportunity lost – Monetary aspect 货币金融方面 – Non-monetary aspect
Specialization and exchange
Activity
You (type paper)
Yr roommate (irons shirt)
Type 1 term ½ hour paper
1 hour
Iron 1 shirt 10 minutes 5 minutes

One hour
2 term papers
paper
10
Law of Comparative Advantage
Specialization and exchange
Activity
You (type paper)
Yr roommate (irons shirt)
Type 1 term ½ hour paper
1 hour
Iron 1 shirt 10 minutes 12 minutes
F F’
15
Exhibit 1
Consumer goods (millions of units per year)
The Economy’s Production Possibilities Frontier
50 A 48
B
43
C U
PPF (AF): Economy uses all resources and technology efficiently
One hour
2 term papers
5 shirts
Total: 2 papers; 5 shirts. Still better than no
specialization
11
Specialization and Exchange
• Barter 物物交换 – Trade products for other products – Simple economies
• Plus direct cost of college
– Tuition, fees, books ($6,000)
• $20,000 - $10,000 + $6,000 = $16,000
– Not included: room, board, personal expenses
3
Opportunity Cost
12 shirts
Total: 2 papers; 12 shirts. Much better than
no specialization
8
Specialization and Exchange
Exchange: You type your roommate’s paper and he irons your 6 shirts
• Few goods • Little specialization
• Money – Medium of exchange – Facilitates exchange 减轻挑战 – Greater specialization
12
Division of Labor
• Division of labor 劳动力的分工 – Specialization; Increased productivity
– Opportunity cost of 1 unit capital good
17
What Can Shift the PPF?
• Economic growth – Expansion in the economy’s PPF
1. Changes in resource availability • Outward shift of PPF – increase in:
• Size, health of labor force • Skills of labor force • Availability of other resources
2. Increases in capital stock股本 • More output; outward shift of PPF
9
No specialization: you have absolute advantage Total: 2 papers; 3 shirts
Activity
You
Type 1 term paper
Iron 1 shirt
½ hour 10 minutes
Your roommate 1 hour
– Depends on the alternative
4
Sunk Cost and Choice
• Sunk cost 已支付成本
– Incurred cost – Cannot be recovered – Ignored when making economic choices • Economic decision makers – Relevant: costs affected by the choice – Irrelevant: sunk costs
• Opportunity cost is subjective – ‘the road not taken’
• Calculating opportunity cost – Requires time and information
• Time: the ultimate constraint • Opportunity cost varies with circumstance
Capital goods (millions of units per year)
16
The Shape of the PPF
• Movement down along PPF – Give up some consumer goods to get more capital goods
• Bowed-out shape 放弃 • Law of increasing opportunity costs • Slope of PPF
One hour I term paper 1 term paper
3 shirts
No shirts
Opp. Cost to 3 shirts type 1 paper
12 shirts
Opp. Cost to 1/3 term
1/12 term
iron 1 shirt paper
paper
7
Law of Comparative Advantage
19
Exhibit 2 (a), (b)
Shifts of the economy’s PPF
(a) Increase in available resources (b) Decrease in available resources
A’
A
A
A’
Consumer goods Consumer goods