Easy on Economics

The measures of central tendency do not always show the real picture. Take for example, the following numbers 35, 35, 35, 35, 35 and  20, 25, 30,45, 55  The mean of both the series is 35. That is 35 is representative of both the series. However, there is variability in data. In the first series, all the values are equal to 35, in the second one, they vary and none of the values is 35. So, we say that dispersion or variability exists. We can find this dispersion amongst the values and between the values and the mean. The methods to find them are the measures of dispersion. They are  1. Range 2. Quartile Deviation 3. Mean Deviation 4. Standard Deviation 5. Lorenz Curve

  The main properties of indifference curve are as follows 1. Indifference curves are downward sloping curves. In order to consume more of one good, the consumption of other good needs to be sacrificed. 2. The slope of the indifference curve is depicts the Marginal Rate of Substitution between two goods. The more you have one good, the lesser and lesser of the other good is sacrificed. This means that the Marginal Rate of Substitution declines as we move down the indifference curve. 3. Higher the indifference curve, higher is the level of satisfaction. 4. Indifference curves do not intersect each other. 5. Indifference curves do not touch either of the axis. 

Unlike the Cardinal utility analysis, which measures utility by numbers, ordinal utility analysis compares utility across different goods and services. Under ordinal utility analysis, utility can't be measured in numbers but compared. So, instead of saying that an orange gives 6 utils and an apple gives 3 utils of utility, we say that an orange gives more utility to the consumer than an apple. Ordinal utility analysis gives rise to the concept of indifference curve.  Indifference curve depicts the different combinations of two goods which gives the consumer the same level of satisfaction. 

  Nominal GDP As we know GDP is the market value of the total output produced in the economy. So, if two goods are produced in the economy- good A and good B in the year 2023, and P A and P B be their respective prices for the year 2023. So, the total GDP produced in the country is  Good A x Price of A + Good B x Price of B Or in general terms, GDP = Q x P The GDP calculated this way is also called Nominal GDP or GDP at current prices. Here, prices of the current accounting year are taken into consideration while computing the GDP.  Nominal GDP can increase with an increase in quantity or prices or both. When the output of the nation remains same but the price level increases, the nominal GDP increases. However, this increase in GDP doesn't show an increase in the flow of goods and services in the nation i.e this type of GDP increase is not accompanied by an increase in production in the nation, but only an increase in prices.  Real GDP  Real GDP  measures...

Consumer equilibrium is at a point where the Marginal Utility (in terms of money) derived from the last unit of the commodity consumed equals price of that unit. In the above equilibrium, the consumer is consuming a single commodity X. In real life, consumers consume numerous goods and services. So, how can equilibrium be established for many commodities consumed by the consumer ? To find the equilibrium we will consider the equilibrium in case of two commodities.  Consumer's Equilibrium in case of Two Commodities Let us assume that the consumer consumes two commodities - commodity X and commodity Y. For commodity X, consumer reaches the equilibrium when      MU X /MU M = P X     or MU X /P X = MU M                                            (i)                             ...

The Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility It has been observed that the desire to consume a commodity decreases as more and more units of that commodity are consumed. Therefore, every successive unit of the commodity consumed provides lesser utility than before. The Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility states that as more and more units of a commodity are consumed, the Marginal Utility derived from every successive unit of the commodity declines.  This happens because psychologically, as a consumer starts to consume one unit of the good after another, the the consumers satisfaction reaches a saturation point. So, with every successive unit consumed, the additional utility the consumer derives goes on declining.  Consumer's Equilibrium using Marginal Utility: Cardinal Analysis Consumer's equilibrium is that level of consumption at which the consumer is getting maximum satisfaction (benefit) while spending out of his given income across different goods and services, and has no tend...

Theory of Consumer Behaviour: Cardinal Utility Analysis As discussed, Economics deals with how economic units make decisions in order to maximize their welfare given the limited resources in hand. So, when studying consumer behaviour, we try to find out of the various goods and services available in the market which goods and services the consumer decides to buy and how much quantity of the goods and services the consumer buys, given his/her limited resources. Which goods and services the consumer decides to buy depends on the preferences of the consumers, and how much of the preferred goods and services the consumer buys depends upon the income of the consumer and prices of the goods and services. Consumers buy goods and services as the consumption of these goods and services gives consumers satisfaction or ‘utility’. Utility is a subjective concept and varies from consumer to consumer. Therefore, two consumers may have different preferences for a good. A person who likes tea ...