The question of government interference in economic activities has been debated for a very long time by the economists. While the early economists considered economics as a handmaid of politics, the modem view is that politics is the handmaid of economics. With the growing importance of the role of government in economic welfare, the modem economists firmly believe that the sphere of government in economic development has no boundary. However, there is no unanimity among the economists about the extent and mode of government intervention in the economic sphere. Hence, we can identify the following political ideologies regarding the government intervention in an economy. The earliest opinion was that the government has nothing to do in an economy as the society will regulate itself. This opinion also stated that the government will wither away over a period of time. These ideologists are called Anarchists. Opposing the anarchists view is the Continue reading
Economics Basics
Administered Price Mechanism
The concept of Administered Price was first introduced by famous British Economist, John Maynard Keynes for the prices charged by a monopolist. A monopolist can be a price maker and he consciously administered the price of his product irrespective of the cost of production. Competitive prices are determined by the interplay of forces of demand and supply in the market whereas administered prices according to Keynes were associated with monopolists’ decision regarding price fixation irrespective of the market forces of demand and supply. However, in India the meaning of Administered Price has been quite different. In India, Administered Prices refer to prices which are fixed and enforced by the Government. They acquire a statutory nature. They are the outcome of the price policy of the Government. The Government interferes in the price mechanism and fixes minimum and maximum prices of various commodities in the agricultural and non- agricultural sectors. Following Continue reading
The Baumol Model of Innovation
The main idea behind Baumols model is that Innovation is the motivating force behind the growth miracle of capitalism. In the neoclassical theory of the firm, firms compete based on price, but William Baumol argues that in a Capitalist economy innovation rather than price is the main competitive dimension and less innovative firms will find their markets shrinking as they lose business to their more innovative competitors. Thus, innovation is essential to the survival of firms in a capitalist economy. Baumol argues that innovation has replaced price as the most important factor that lies behind economic growth. He suggests that even though it has been recognized that important innovations stem from small firms, individuals or entrepreneurs, the bulk of innovative activity however is carried out by large oligopolistic firms. Baumol’s argument supports Schumpeter’s distinction between entrepreneurs led and routinized innovation. Schumpeter held that technological competition was the form of competition Continue reading
Keynesian and Classical Economists Views about Disequilibrium
Economists usually define general disequilibrium as the state in which contrasting market forces of supply and demand fail to reach a balance and there exist an intrinsic inclination for change. The main indicator of market disequilibrium is the continuation of shortages either in the demand or supply side of the economy. There are two main models that hold divergent views concerning disequilibrium namely the Keynesian and Classical Economists models. Generally, the major causes for disequilibrium in the markets if the deficiencies created either in the aggregate demand or aggregate supply side of the economy. This means that in such circumstances the market does not clear. Main causes of disequilibrium are understood in the light of the economic model s followed by scholars. For instance, the Keynesian theory’s causes differ from that of classical economists. For instance, following Keynesian’s view, disequilibrium arises when there are disparities between leakages and injections where Continue reading
Theory of Absolute Advantage and Comparative Advantage
Theory of Absolute Advantage If one region can produce a commodity with less expense than another, and they exchange, then both should benefit. In a nutshell, this is the law of comparative advantage. It is used as the justification for WTO trade regulations. Some land grows corn better than other land. This economical insight into farming in early 18th Century was the cornerstone of the law of absolute advantage. Some farmland will yield more corn per acre than another, therefore the good land confers an absolute advantage over other regions. The conclusion drawn from this argument is that the farmer of the poor land should change products that it can produce to its absolute advantage, such as grazing sheep. The law of absolute advantage is based on the assumption that competition is the best paradigm within which to build an economy, it assumes that competition will improve production. The Continue reading
Price Elasticity Of Demand – Concept and Types
The price elasticity of demand measures the degree of responsiveness of quantity demanded for a certain commodity to the change in its price. In other words, the price elasticity of demand is defined as the ‘ratio of percentage change in the quantity demanded to the percentage change in price. It can be expressed as follows: Price elasticity of demand (ep) = Percentage change in quantity of demand / Percentage change in price Where, ep = Coefficient of price elasticity of demand. The price elasticity of demand is always negative due to the inverse relationship between the price and quantity demanded. But for the sake of simplicity in understanding the magnitude of response of quantity demanded to the change in the price we ignore the negative sign and take into account only the numerical value of the price elasticity of demand. Types of Price Elasticity of Demand There are five types of Continue reading