100% satisfaction guarantee Immediately available after payment Both online and in PDF No strings attached
logo-home
Summary Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO NOTES Commercestudy CA$24.80   Add to cart

Summary

Summary Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO NOTES Commercestudy

 11 views  0 purchase
  • Course
  • Institution

Edexcel economics igcse micro notes 1. Economic Problems 1. What is economics? A social science studies the behavior of individual organization/the-entire economy. 2. Why do we study economics? Because there is a basic economic problem which has risen due to the scarcity of resources. 3...

[Show more]

Preview 4 out of 55  pages

  • October 5, 2023
  • 55
  • 2023/2024
  • Summary
avatar-seller
Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO
NOTES
Commercestudy
Edexcel economics igcse micro notes
1. Economic Problems
1. What is economics? A social science studies the behavior of individual organization/the-entire economy.

2. Why do we study economics? Because there is a basic economic problem which has risen due to
the scarcity of resources.

3. Define the following:
 Wants: people’s desire towards good/service
 Need: basic requirements needed for human survival
 Scarcity: When we are unable to fulfill our unlimited wants from limited sources.
 Opportunity Cost: It is the next best alternative foregone when making a decision.

 The opportunity cost of choosing to study IGCSE Economics is another IGCSE subject you could be
studying instead.

 The opportunity cost of building an additional airport terminal is using the same government funds to
build public housing for low-income families.

 The opportunity cost of a school purchasing 100 laptops for use in classrooms might be the science
equipment that could not be bought as a result.

4. What is the basic economic problem?
‘Scarcity arises because resources are finite in order to fulfill infinite/unlimited wants of consumers. (It is
because resources are scarce but human wants are unlimited.)

It’s concerned with how best to allocate scarce resources in order to satisfy peoples unlimited needs/wants.

It has three fundamental questions:
1. What to produce? What goods/services should be produced?
2. How to produce? Methods/process on how it should be produced
3. Whom to produce? Which econ agent receives these, individual, firms, government?

5. What is the PPC? It shows the diff combinations of 2 goods that can be produced if all resources in the
country are fully used.

What are the key assumptions of the ppc model?
 Country can only produce 2 types of goods
 Country’s technology is constant at the given time

What is the usefulness of the PPC model? Its used to illustrate the concept of
 Scarcity
 Opportunity cost
 Inefficiency
 Economic growth/recession

,Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO
NOTES
Commercestudy
Points on the PPC are EFFICENT/ATTAINABLE:
The economy can move between points on a PPC by reallocating resources between the two goods.


Point inside PPC IS INEFFICENY:
Because it is producing less than what it can and not all resources are fully utilized




Point outside the PPC IS UNATTAINABLE/INSUFFICENT:
Because it is beyond the scope of the economy’s existing resources.
In order to produce the economy would need to see a shift in the PPC towards the right.


An outward shift in PPC (increase production) It will lead to economic growth. For this to occur, an
economy would need to:

 Discover or develop new raw materials. Example: discover new oil fields
 Employ new technology/production methods to increase productivity
 Increase labour force by encouraging birth and immigration, increasing retirement age etc.

An inward shift in the PPC (decrease production) will lead to the economy shrinking. This can occur in
the PPC due to:

 natural disasters, that erode infrastructure and kill the population
 very low investment in new technologies will cause productivity to fall over time
 Scarcity of resources

8. What is economic growth and what are the positive factors?
Economic growth is the increase in the level of output in a country and a rise in the GDP over a period, usually
one year.

 Increasing productivity
 Increasing technology/investment/efficiency
 New resources
 Education/training

9. What is recession and negative factors affecting? Recession is when a countries productivity levels are
falling.

,Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO
NOTES
Commercestudy
 Resource depletion
 Falling investments
 Resources being destroyed


2. Economic Assumptions

1. What is rationality? Decisions based on clear thought/reason.

2. What are the two assumptions in relation to rationality?

Consumers aim to maximize benefits : Consumers go for the lowest price in the event where 3 suppliers give
the same product. Consumers will look into quality if they have to choose from same priced products from diff
suppliers

Consumers may not always maximize benefits due to:
 Buying habits influence by others / influential behavior
 Buying habits developed by consumers habitually / habitual behavior
 Hard to quantify their satisfaction/happiness

Businesses aim to maximize profit: They buy the cheapest material from suppliers for same quality products.
They charge the highest price that the market can stand.

Producers may not always maximize their profits due to:
 Reputation/good will received from consumers is more valuable than profits.
 Some firms have alternative business objectives and is expensive.
 Businesses are set up as social enterprises.

, Economics: EDEXCEL IGCSE MICRO
NOTES
Commercestudy
3. Demand Curve

1. What is demand? It is the amount of goods that will be bought at a given price over a period.

 Demand represents the consumers (final consumption) /customers/ individuals/ households.
 It has a Negative/Inverse Relationship between Price and Quantity Demanded. ( price rises , demand falls)
 It can be represented in a Schedule (table), Curve (graph), and Function.

2. What is Effective demand? A need backed by the ability to pay.

3. What is the demand curve? It is a line on the graph that shows the QD at any given price and It Slopes
down from left 2 right.




Movement along the curve: A change in price. Higher the price, less demand for products
 Contraction in demand: Rise in price, fall in demand
 Extension in demand: Fall in price, rise in demand.


4. Factors affecting demand

1. What are the factors that shift the demand curve?

 Income: If consumers have more income, they are most likely to spend it on goods/services,
therefore demand for that product increases shifting the curve to the right. (vice versa)

 Advertising: It attracts customers so when companies advertise consumers are convicted to buy products
so demand increases. (Vice versa)

 Trend/taste: Consumers buy products largely based on their taste so if their taste declines for a
product demand falls. (Vice versa)

 Price of substitutes: There alternatives where one product is used instead of another. Like tea and coffee,
tea is a substitute for coffee so if price of coffee increases people shift to tea so demand for tea increases
and vice versa.

The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:

Guaranteed quality through customer reviews

Guaranteed quality through customer reviews

Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.

Quick and easy check-out

Quick and easy check-out

You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.

Focus on what matters

Focus on what matters

Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!

Frequently asked questions

What do I get when I buy this document?

You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.

Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?

Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.

Who am I buying these notes from?

Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller ACADEMICAIDSTORE. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.

Will I be stuck with a subscription?

No, you only buy these notes for CA$24.80. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.

Can Stuvia be trusted?

4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)

76800 documents were sold in the last 30 days

Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now

Start selling
CA$24.80
  • (0)
  Add to cart