Keat Managerial Economics 6e
Keat Managerial Economics 6e
Keat Managerial Economics 6e
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Chapter 1
Introduction
Multiple-Choice Questions
1) The best definition of economics is
A) how choices are made under conditions of scarcity.
B) how money is used.
C) how goods and services are produced.
D) how businesses maximize profits.
Answer: A
Level of Difficulty: Easy
2) Managerial economics is best defined as the economic study of
A) how businesses can make the most profits.
B) how businesses can decide on the best use of scarce resources.
C) how businesses can operate at the lowest costs.
D) how businesses can sell the most products.
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Easy
3) Managerial economics is best defined as
A) the study of economics by managers.
B) the study of the aggregate economic activity.
C) the study of how managers make decisions about the use of scarce resources.
D) All of the above are good definitions.
Answer: C
Level of Difficulty: Easy
4) Scarcity is a condition that exists when
A) there is a fixed supply of resources.
B) there is a large demand for a product.
C) resources are not able to meet the entire demand for a product.
D) All of the above.
Answer: C
Level of Difficulty: Easy
5) Which of the statements below best illustrates the use of the market process in determining the
allocation of scarce resources?
A) "Let's make this product because this is what we know how to do best."
B) "Although we're currently making a profit on the products we make, we should consider
shifting to products where we can earn even more money."
C) "Everyone is opening video stores, why don't we?"
D) "We can't stop making this product. This product gave our company its start."
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
6) Which of the following is not considered as a factor of production?
A) money
C) land
Answer: A
Level of Difficulty: Easy
7) Select the group that best represents the basic factors of production.
A) land, labor, capital, entrepreneurship
C) land, natural resources, labor, capital
Answer: A
Level of Difficulty: Easy
8) Which of the following is an example of how the question of "what goods and services to
produce?" is answered by the command process?
A) government subsidies for windmill energy production
B) laws regarding equal opportunity in employment
C) government allowance for the deduction of interest payments on private mortgages
D) government regulations concerning the dumping of hazardous waste
Answer: A
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
9) Which of the following is the best example of "what goods and services should be produced?"
A)
B)
C)
D)
the use of a capital intensive versus a labor intensive process of manufacturing textiles
the production of SUVs versus the production of sub-compact cars
the manufacturing of computer workstations in China or in India
the leasing versus the purchasing of new capital equipment
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
10) Which of the following is the best example of "how goods and services should be
produced?"
A)
B)
C)
D)
Answer: C
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
11) From the standpoint of a soft drink company the question of "What goods and services
should be produced?" is best represented by which of the following decisions?
A) whether or not to hire additional workers
B) whether or not to increase its advertising
C) whether or not to shut down selected manufacturing facilities
D) All of the above are examples.
E) None of the above are examples.
Answer: E
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
12) In the text, the authors refer to "Stage II" of the process of changing economics as
A) demand management.
C) diminishing returns.
B) cost management.
D) profit taking.
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Easy
B) risk taking.
D) political skills.
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Easy
17) In the text, a key factor in the changing "economics of a business" is
A) the need to grow revenues.
C) rising labor costs.
B) increasing competition.
D) the need to expand market share.
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Easy
B) resource scarcity
D) technology
Answer: B
Level of Difficulty: Easy
20) Which of the following is the best example of opportunity cost?
A) a company's expenditures on a training program for its employees
B) the rate of return on a company's investment
C) the amount of money that a company can earn by depositing excess funds in a money
market fund
D) the amount of profit that a company forgoes when it decides to drop a particular product
line in favor of another one
Answer: D
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
21) Which of the following is the best example of the "traditional process"?
A) commercial bank mergers
B) minimum age limits for the purchase of alcoholic beverages
C) auctioning US Treasury bills
D) colleges and universities give admissions preferences to children of alumni
Answer: D
Level of Difficulty: Moderate
Analytical Questions
1) What economic conditions are relevant in managerial decision-making?
Answer: Such factors as market structure, supply and demand conditions, technology,
government regulations, international factors, expectations about the future, and the
macroeconomy are economic factors that play a role in managerial decision-making.
2) What factors lead to competitive advantage for a firm?
Answer: Cost leadership (lower costs than competing firms), product differentiation, selection
and focus on a market niche, outsourcing and merger strategies, and international focus or
expansion are factors in the competitive advantage of the firm.
3) What are the typical types of risk faced by a firm?
Answer: Changes in supply and demand conditions, changes in technology, increased
competition, changes in interest rates and inflation rates, exchange rate changes, and political
risk are typical types of risk faced by firms.
4) What are the four stages of change faced by firms?
Answer: Stage I: Market dominance, in which the only strategy required to earn a profit is
sufficient markup over cost. (Cost-plus)
Stage II: Technology and competition place pressures on the firm, often resulting in cost-cutting,
downsizing, restructuring, and reengineering. (Cost management)
Stage III: Focus on growth of top lines of business. (Revenue management)
Stage IV: Striving for continued profitable growth. (Revenue plus)
5) How do the three basic economic questions relate to the firm?
Answer: Firms must choose WHAT goods and services to produce, HOW to produce them
(through appropriate choice of resources and technology), and FOR WHOM they will be
provided (what segment of the market on which to focus).
6) What other business disciplines are related to Managerial Economics?
Answer: Accounting, Finance, Management Science (Quantitative Methods), Management
Strategies, Marketing