Universitat Internacional de Catalunya
Microeconomics
Other languages of instruction: English, Spanish,
Teaching staff
By appointment.
Introduction
This course will be taught in English.
This course is compulsory within the official course syllabus for the Administration and Business Management degree.
The course will cover the basic concepts required for understanding the behaviour of individual economic agents (consumers and producers) as well as an introduction to market structures (perfect competition and monopoly).
Pre-course requirements
This course uses mathematical techniques with which students should already be familiar: first- and second-degree equations; derivatives and partial derivatives.
Sufficient knowledge of Catalan to follow the lectures and assimilate the teaching material to be included in the tests.
Objectives
1. To introduce the student to the field of economic analysis, teaching them how to think in economic terms.
2. To recognise the instruments for basic economic analysis.
3. To introduce the theory of production.
4. To recognise the perfect competition model.
Competences/Learning outcomes of the degree programme
- 13 - To be familiar with and understand the terms and processes of company management.
- 21 - To be familiar with the main theories in the fields of microeconomics and macroeconomics.
- 22 - To be able to identify the nature and behaviour of producers, consumers and investors.
- 23 - To be familiar with and know how to use microeconomic and macroeconomic analysis terminology.
- 24 - To be able to carry out a financial, social and historical analysis of the environment in which a company operates.
- 31 - To develop the ability to identify and interpret numerical data.
- 32 - To acquire problem solving skills based on quantitative and qualitative information.
- 50 - To acquire the ability to relate concepts, analyse and synthesise.
- 53 - To acquire the skills necessary to learn autonomously.
- 58 - To be able to develop self-assessment exercises.
- 64 - To be able to plan and organise one's work.
Learning outcomes of the subject
After completing the course, the student should:
- Have a basic knowledge of microeconomic analysis.
- Have acquired analytical skills to reach valid conclusions.
- Be able to incorporate scientific rigour in the analysis of economic issues.
Syllabus
The syllabus below corresponds to the English group only (Spanish group follows):
Lesson 1. Basic tools for Microeconomic analysis
1.1 What is economics?
1.2 Positive and normative economics
1.3 Macro vs. Micro
1.4 Demand, supply, and (static) equilibrium
1.5 Change in equilibrium
1.6 Say’s law
1.7 Elasticities and the classification of goods
1.8 Budget constraint and production possibility curve
1.9 Market failure and government failure
Lesson 2. Welfare analysis
2.1 Social welfare: Consumer surplus and producer surplus
2.2 Taxes and subsidies
2.3 Quotas and tariffs
2.4 Price control
Lesson 3. Production theory
3.1 The production function. Technical efficiency. Fixed and variable factors
3.2 Isoquants
3.3 Production in the short run: Total, average and marginal product. Law of diminishing returns and output-elasticity
3.4 Production in the long run: Returns to scale
3.5 Production functions
Lesson 4. Cost theory
4.1 Different types of costs
4.2 Costs in the short run: Total, average and marginal cost. Cost functions and production functions
4.3 Costs in the long run: Isocost and optimal production. Average and marginal cost. Scale economies and cost elasticity.
Lesson 5. Perfect competition
5.1 Market structures
5.2 Production decision
5.3 The firm’s supply function: the short and long run
5.4 The market’s supply function
Lesson 6. Introduction to imperfect competition
6.1 Perfect competition vs. monopoly
6.2 Equilibrium under monopoly
6.3 The case of monopsony in the labor market
6.4 Are monopolies (socially) bad?
- La Economía como ciencia social: Economía y persona
- What is Economics?
- The main economic problems
- The two branches of Economics
- Resources' Assignment: The Production Possibility Frontier
- Graphics and slopes in Economy. Relations between variables.
- a
- Demand and supply, individual and market
- Tax Policy and the Law of Supply and Demand
- Social welfare: Consumer Surplus and Producer Surplus
- Government interventions: Taxes and Subsidies
- Government interventions: Fixing Prices
- Government interventions: Quotes and Tariffs
- Economic efficiency in competitive markets
- The Production Function. The technical efficiency. Fixed factors and variable factors
- Concept of isoquant
- Production in the short run: Total product, Average product and Marginal product
- Production in the short run: Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns, Output-elasticity and Cassel Production Periods
- Production in the long run: Returns to Scale
- Production functions
- Different concepts of cost
- Costs in the short run: Total cost, Average cost and Marginal cost
- Costs in the short run: Relationship between the Cost functions and the Product functions
- Costs in the long run: Concept of isocost and optimal production
- Costs in the long run: Average cost and Marginal cost in the long run
- Costs in the long run: Concept of Scale Economies. Cost elasticity
- Market structures
- Production decision in perfect competition
- Supply function of a firm in the short run and in the long run. Supply function of the market in perfect competition.
- Differences between perfect competition and monopoly
- Monopolistic equilibrium
Teaching and learning activities
In person
The activities can be grouped into four types: presentation sessions, participatory sessions, practical sessions and individual or group study
|
TRAINING ACTIVITY |
COMPETENCES |
|
self-evaluation |
18 19 20 21 22 23 27 31 50 53 55 58 |
Evaluation systems and criteria
In person
Only for the English group:
Clarification on evaluation:
The module will be evaluated using two elements: continuous evaluation (CE), with a weighting of 40% (this includes a mid-term examination, class activities, attendance, and active participation, with the midterm accounting for 30%) and a final examination (FE), with a weighting of 60%.
The content of the mid-course examination will include all the material covered up to the class before the examination. The mid-course examination will not be repeated. A student who does not sit the mid-course examination will obtain a zero score in it.
If a student attends less than 70% of classes, this may lead to the classification of 'not evaluated' for the first sitting.
Second sitting:
The second-sitting examination (either in June or July) will consist of a single examination (no CE will be assessed at this point) with a maximum grade of 7/10.
Bibliography and resources
You are encouraged to take notes in class and, in case of need, refer to one of the following books:
• Mankiw, G. (2004). Principios de Economía. McGrawHill.
• Pindyck, R. & Rubinfeld, D. (2001). Microeconomics. Ed. Prentice-Hall.
• Varian, H. (2009). Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach. W. W. Norton & Company