Microeconomics FINAL Flashcards
monopoly
Market with only one seller.
market power
Ability of a seller or buyer to affect the price of a good.
marginal revenue
Change in revenue resulting from a one-unit increase in output
Average and marginal revenue are shown
for the demand curve
PROFIT IS MAXIMIZED WHEN
MARGINAL REVENUE EQUALS MARGINAL COST
Q* (WITH OUT SECRIFICES) is the output level at
which
MR = MC
MR =
Elasticiry of demand
A monopolistic market has no
supply curve
monopoly power—
it can profitably charge a price greater than marginal cost.
Remember the important distinction between a perfectly competitive firm and a firm with monopoly power:
For the competitive firm, price equals marginal cost; for the firm with monopoly power, price exceeds marginal cost.
Lerner Index of Monopoly Power
Measure of monopoly power calculated as excess of price over marginal cost as a fraction of price.
Three factors determine a firm’s elasticity of demand
- The elasticity of market demand. Because the firm’s own demand will be at least as elastic as market demand, the elasticity of market demand limits the potential for monopoly power.
- The number of firms in the market. If there are many firms, it is unlikely that any one firm will be able to affect price significantly.
- The interaction among firms. Even if only two or three firms are in the market, each firm will be unable to profitably raise price very much if the rivalry among them is aggressive, with each firm trying to capture as much of the market as it can.
If there is only one firm—a pure monopolist—its demand curve is the market
demand curve.
If there is only one firm—a pure monopolist—its demand curve is the market demand curve. In this case, the firm’s degree of monopoly power depends completely on the
elasticity of market demand
If there is only one firm—a pure monopolist—its demand curve is the market demand curve. In this case, the firm’s degree of monopoly power depends completely on the
elasticity of market demand
When several firms compete with one another, the elasticity of market demand
sets a lower limit on the magnitude of the elasticity of demand for each firm
When only a few firms account for most of the sales in a market, we say that the market is
highly concentrated
barrier to entry
Condition that impedes entry by new competitors
Sometimes there are natural barriers to entry:
- Patents, copyrights, and licenses
- Economies of scale may make it too costly for more than a few firms to supply the entire market. In some cases, economies of scale may be so large that it is most efficient for a single firm—a natural monopoly—to supply the entire market.
Because of the higher price, consumers lose:
Producer gains:
deadweight loss:
consumers lose A + B
producer gains A-C
deadweight loss B + C.
rent seeking
Spending money in socially unproductive efforts to acquire, maintain, or exercise monopoly
When the price is lowered to Pc, at the point where marginal cost intersects average revenue, output increases to its
maximum Qc. This is the output that would be produced by a competitive industry.
natural monopoly
Firm that can produce the entire output of the market at a cost lower than what it would be if there were several firms.
If the price were regulated to be Pc the firm would:
Set the price at Pr:
If price were regulated to be Pc the firm would lose money and go out of business.
Setting the price at Pr yields the largest possible output consistent with the firm’s remaining in business; excess profit is zero.
monopolistic competition
Market in which firms can enter freely, each producing its own brand or version of a differentiated product.
oligopoly
Market in which only a few firms compete with one another and entry by new firms is impeded.
cartel
Market in which some or all firms explicitly collude, coordinating prices and output levels to maximize joint profits.
A monopolistically competitive market has two key characteristics:
- Firms compete by selling differentiated products that are highly substitutable for one another but not perfect substitutes. In other words, the cross-price elasticities of demand are large but not infinite.
- There is free entry and exit: It is relatively easy for new firms to enter the market with their own brands and for existing firms to leave if their products become unprofitable.
Because the firm is the only producer of its brand, it faces a
downward-sloping demand curve.
Why firm has monopoly power?
Price exceeds marginal cost
Why yellowshaded rectangle shows the amount of profit?
Because price also exceeds average cost
In the long run, these profits attract new firms with competing brands. The firm’s market share falls, and its demand curve shifts
downward
(A MONOPOLISTICALLY COMPETITIVE FIRM IN THE SHORT AND LONG RUN)
In long-run equilibrium, described in part (b), price equals average cost, so the firm earns…
ZERO PROFIT
Under perfect competition, price equals
marginal cost
Under monopolistic competition, price exceeds
marginal cost
What yellow shaded area shows:
deadweight loss
Unlike firm in perfect competition monopoly faces a
downward sloping demand curve
Monopoly does not have a supply curve because
quantity supplied depends on demand curve
Firms with monopoly power can charge price above the MC, the degree of monopoly power is measured with the
the Lerner index
Monopoly power depends
on market elasticity of demand, number of firms in the market and interaction among those firms
Monopoly power leads to deadweight loss that can be minimized with
price regulation
Monopsony is
a market with only one buyer
In monopolistic competition firms face
downward-sloping demand curve like in monopoly, but zero economic profits like in perfect competition
In oligopolistic markets, the products may or may not be
differentiated
Nash equilibrium
Set of strategies or actions in which each firm does the best it can given its competitors’ actions.
duopoly
Market in which two firms compete with each other
Cournot model
Oligopoly model in which firms produce a homogeneous good, each firm treats the output of its competitors as fixed, and all firms decide simultaneously (tuo pačiu metu) how much to produce.
reaction curve
Relationship between a firm’s profit-maximizing output and the amount it thinks its competitor will produce
Cournot equilibrium
Equilibrium in the Cournot model in which each firm correctly assumes how much its competitor will produce and sets its own production level accordingly.
Cournot equilibrium is an example of
a Nash equilibrium
Bertrand model
Oligopoly model in which firms produce a homogeneous good, each firm treats the price of its competitors as fixed, and all firms decide simultaneously what price to charge.
noncooperative game
Game in which negotiation and enforcement of binding contracts are not possible.
payoff matrix
Table showing profit (or payoff) to each firm given its decision and the decision of its competitor
prisoners’ dilemma
Game theory example in which two prisoners must decide separately whether to confess to a crime; if a prisoner confesses, he will receive a lighter sentence and his accomplice will receive a heavier one, but if neither confesses, sentences will be lighter than if both confess.
price rigidity
Characteristic of oligopolistic markets by which firms are reluctant (nenoriai) to change prices even if costs or demands change
kinked demand curve model
Oligopoly model in which each firm faces a demand curve kinked at the currently prevailing (vyraujanti) price: at higher prices demand is very elastic, whereas at lower prices it is inelastic
price signaling
Form of implicit collusion in which a firm announces a price increase in the hope that other firms will follow suit
price leadership
Pattern of pricing in which one firm regularly announces price changes that other firms then match
game
Situation in which players (participants) make strategic decisions that take into account each other’s actions and responses
payoff
Value associated with a possible outcome
strategy
Rule or plan of action for playing a game
optimal strategy
Strategy that maximizes a player’s expected payoff
cooperative game
Game in which participants can negotiate binding contracts that allow them to plan joint strategies
noncooperative game
Game in which negotiation and enforcement of binding contracts are not possible
dominant strategy
Strategy that is optimal no matter what an opponent does.
equilibrium in dominant strategies
Outcome of a game in which each firm is doing the best it can regardless of what its competitors are doing
maximin strategy
Strategy that maximizes the minimum gain that can be earned
repeated game
Game in which actions are taken and payoffs received over and over again
tit-for-tat strategy
Repeated-game strategy in which a player responds in kind to an opponent’s previous play, cooperating with cooperative opponents and retaliating against uncooperative ones