Assignment

OBJECTIVE of Assignment

You are to apply microeconomic theory to explain and analyse an article on either two or more topics from:

•Learning Module 1

- A definition of economics
- Scarcity, trade-offs & the economic problem
- Production possibility frontiers & opportunity cost

•Learning Module 2

TOPIC L2: DEMAND & SUPPLY

- Demand side of the market
- Supply side of the market
- Market equilibrium
- Predicting changes in price & quantity

•Learning Module 3

TOPIC L3: ELASTICITY

- Price elasticity of demand
- meaning
- measurement
- determinants
- relationship with total revenue
- Other demand elasticities
- Price elasticity of supply

•Learning Module 4

TOPIC L4: ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY

- Consumer surplus & producer surplus
- Efficiency of competitive markets
- Price floors & price ceilings
- Taxes

•Learning Module 5

TOPIC L5: BEHAVIOURAL ECONOMICS & ASYMMETRIC INFORMATION

- Behavioural economics - irrational and social influences on decision-making
- Externalities - negative & positive
- Government intervention (due to market failure)
- Public goods & the free rider problem
- Common resources - tragedy of the commons
- Asymmetric information - adverse selection, moral hazard, principal-agent problem

You are to select a newspaper/magazine/web article for your microeconomic analysis.

a. The main article must relate to ANY two or more of the topicsL1 to L5, i.e. chapters 1-5covered in the lecture program

b. The mainarticle must have been written after 1st January, 2016

c. Article can be internationally focused, so long as it's in English

d. You should back up some of your key points or use for data purposes by having several relevant supplementary articleseither from peerreviewed journals or other relevant topicrelated news sources. You should cite your use of other sources via appropriate in-text referencing.

e. Your microeconomics diagramscan either be handdrawn and then scanned and inserted as a 'picture' into your working document, or be drawn by using appropriate computer/web software such as using a textbook.

Layout of Student's Assignment

Introduction(including economic concepts/theories to be applied)

Analysis (application of theory to article, including well labelled diagrams)

Conclusion

References (use Chicago style)

Main Article Copy showing date and source.