Posted: March 23rd, 2023

MN-2565 Economics for Business

MN-2565 Economics for Business
Academic Year 2022-23
Module Handbook
Module Co-ordinator:
Ansgar Wohlschlegel
Office: Singleton Campus, Keir Hardie Building, 4th Floor, Room 402
On-campus Consultation Hour, (Singleton, KH402): Thu 14:30-15:30
On-campus Consultation Hour, (Bay, SOM206): Tue 12:30-13:30
Online Consultation Hours via zoom available on email appointment
Email: a.u.m.wohlschlegel@swansea.ac.uk
Teaching Staff:
Huanhuan Chen: 941855@swansea.ac.uk
Rajib Islam: 2020752@swansea.ac.uk
Consultation Hours on email appointment
Date of Issue: January 2023
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School of Social Sciences
MN-2565 Economics for Business
Module Overview
Introduction
This module builds a rigorous understanding of basic microeconomic and macroeconomic principles
by combining theory and application to contemporary issues, such that students have a sound basis
for progression to understand the context for business actions in the wider economy.
This booklet contains:
• an introduction to the module
• details of all learning interactions
• details of the core textbooks via the reading list
• information on assessment and feedback, including the coursework brief
• an overview of the entire module
Module Delivery
This module will be delivered in a blended way: Study of pre-recorded lecture videos provided via
Canvas, and relevant sections of a textbook, is expected ahead of each two-hour “Lecture” session.
Students are advised to plan their week and allow sufficient time to study these materials in a timely
manner. The live on-campus elements, consisting of a two-hour “Lecture” and a one-hour “Seminar”
session per week, will have a focus on problem solving and active learning. A recording will be
posted on Canvas following each session.
Seminars
Seminars are timetabled and delivered face to face on campus.
Group 01 – Monday at 12pm
Group 02 – Monday at 1pm
Group 03 – Monday at 2pm
Group 04 – Tuesday at 1pm
Group 05 – Tuesday at 2pm
Group 06 – Thursday at 11am
Group 07 – Thursday at 1pm
Group 08 – Thursday at 2pm
Group 09 – Friday at 9am
Group 10 – Friday at 11am
Group 11 – Friday at 12pm
Group 12 – Friday at 1pm
Students will be automatically allocated to seminar groups. Students who need to change their
seminar group, for good reason, should e-mail studentsupport-socialsciences@swansea.ac.uk.
Seminar times may change in the first two weeks of term. Please check Canvas announcements
and the timetable data displayed on the Intranet for regular updates.
Communication
All information related to the module will be conveyed to students via Canvas through the
Announcements feature which will also send an e-mail notification to student accounts.
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Learning Outcomes
On completion of this module students should be able to:
• Explain and critically apply macroeconomic theory
• Describe the measurement and use of national income, and demonstrate how monetary
and fiscal policies may influence national income and employment;
• Explain and critically apply microeconomic theory and concepts, derive market demand and
supply schedules, and analyze changes in market price.
• Explain theories of perfect and imperfect competition, critically appraise the case for freemarket economics, and recount the sources and implications of market failure.
Transferrable Skills
Oral/discussion skills
Presentation skills
Development of independence and autonomy
Self-confidence
Sustaining an argument
Understanding other points of view
Questioning skills
Ability to relate well to others
Organisational skills
Learning skills
Problem solving skills
Reading Material
Every effort has been made to provide the books and journals featured in the reading list for this
module in digital and hard copy format via the library. For more details of the resources available
to support your studies please consult the library services guide or watch this short recording by
Subject Librarian, Naomi Prady.
Home – Economics – LibGuides at Swansea University
The full reading list for this module is available via Canvas
The core textbook for the module is:
Economics (Fifth Edition). N. Gregory Mankiw and Mark P. Taylor. Cengage.
A core textbook is only a starting point and provides introductory and background information only.
Supplemental reading will be identified at each lecture. To achieve high marks in this module
students will need to do the background and supplemental reading as well as conduct their own
independent research for instance through the reading of academic journals, into the topics
identified.
Assessment
The assessment for the module is structured as follows:
• 60% (3*20%) Three individual coursework assignments of 1000 words maximum each
• 40% Open Book Examination taken online – students will have a 1 hour 10 minute window
in which to complete the exam.
• Resit – Open Book Examination taken online worth 100% of the overall Module Mark –
students will have a 2 hour 10 minute window in which to complete the exam.
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Past papers will be worked through in the final (week 11) lecture session of the module.
The format of the main (and potentially the deferred first-sit) exam will be a multiple-choice part
(worth 50 marks) covering the entire module, and an open-response part (worth 50 marks) covering
Topics 8-10 only. The open-response part consists of two questions of which students will be asked
to answer one.
If you fail this module you will be required to take an examination during the supplementary
assessment period. The resit examination will be weighted as 100% of the overall module mark –
the initial assessment weightings do not apply for resits.
The resit exam will consist of a multiple-choice part (worth 30 marks) and two open-response parts
(worth 40 and 30 marks, respectively). Again, the multiple-choice part will cover the entire module.
The first open-response part will cover Topics 1-7, and the second one will cover Topics 8-10. Each
open-response part will consist of two questions of which students will be asked to answer one from
each part.
Submission in Welsh
Any written work submitted as part of any assessment or examination may be submitted in Welsh,
and that work submitted in Welsh will be treated no less favourably than written work submitted by
you in English as part of an assessment or examination.
Canvas – Digital Learning Platform
To ensure that students have everything they need to get the most out of Canvas the University has
produced a comprehensive guide called “Passport to Canvas”, which can be accessed on the
following link: https://canvas.swansea.ac.uk/courses/19536
“Passport to Canvas” will always be available to students, meaning that they can go through the
material in one go, or dip in and out of it as you wish. Students can access the platform via this link
https://canvas.swansea.ac.uk/ or from within the university apps and the MyUni webpages.
Canvas Support is available 24/7 365 days a year in the following ways:
• Canvas Support Hotline
• Canvas Chat
• Report a problem
Students can also access these avenues of support via the Canvas Help icon in the navigation
menu on the Canvas Platform https://canvas.swansea.ac.uk/
Students may also find the guides and online community on the links below helpful:
Canvas Guides: https://community.canvaslms.com/community/answers/guides/
Canvas Online Community: https://community.canvaslms.com/community/answers
Note on Terminology
For the purpose of all information, regulations and policies associated with Swansea University we
use the terms ‘Module’ and ‘Programme’ when making reference to students’ studies. Modules are
discrete educational components of a programme which, when considered collectively, make up the
required credit for students to complete each level of a programme.
However, in Canvas, your Digital Learning Platform, the term ‘Modules’ has a different meaning – it
is used to describe where all of the learning resources are stored. For this reason students will see
the term ‘Course’ used in Canvas instead but it means the same as Module (above).
School of Social Sciences
MN-2565 Economics for Business
Individual Coursework Assignment
The coursework assignment for this module are three individual assignments each worth 20% of
the overall module mark.
Coursework Brief
All answers for all the questions in all coursework assignments MUST include a brief
explanation of how you found them.
Coursework 1 [to be submitted by 2pm on Monday 27st February 2023 via Turnitin]
Question 1 (60% of points): Paul loves hot drinks, and he has a part of his weekly budget
earmarked for buying them. In the diagram below, you can find Paul’s budget line BL that reflects
today’s prices and Paul’s current budget. Furthermore, there are three examples IC1, IC2 and IC3
for indifference curves and three examples X, Y and Z for specific bundles of weekly tea and coffee
consumption.
Coffee
Tea
X
Y
Z
15
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BL
IC1
IC3
IC2
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a) Identify Paul’s optimal bundle of weekly tea and coffee consumption! [10% of points]
b) Compare bundles Z and Y by explaining
b1) which of these bundles Paul likes better, and
b2) which of these bundles costs more. [10% of points]
c) Place a dot in the above diagram for the following bundles of weakly tea and coffee
consumption if such a bundle exists and label each dot according to the bundle it
represents. If no bundle with the required properties exists, explain why it can’t exist. [16%
of points]
c1) Bundle A: Paul prefers A over all of the bundles X, Y and Z.
c2) Bundle B: Paul prefers X over B and B over Y. He can afford bundle B.
c3) Bundle C: Paul prefers Z over C and C over X. He can afford bundle C.
c4) Bundle D: Paul prefers any of the bundles X, Y and Z over D, although D includes more
tea than these other three bundles X, Y and Z. He can’t afford bundle D.
d) Today’s price of tea is £1.40 per cup. Using the numbers given in the diagram, find today’s
price for a cup of coffee and Paul’s weekly budget for hot drinks! [12% of points]
e) Some time later, Paul tells you that his optimal bundle is now Y, although he insists his
preference ordering of the bundles has remained the same. Identify a full chain of events
that could have resulted in this change in Paul’s optimal bundle. [12% of points]
Question 2 (40% of points): You are a small-scale manufacturer of high-end coffee machines,
which you can sell at on a perfectly competitive market at the market price of £1,000 per machine.
The following table indicates how much it costs you to produce a certain number of coffee
machines per month.
a) Complete the 20 empty cells in the table (working outs must be shown for at least one
result per line of the table). [20% of points]
b) What is your optimal output of coffee machines per month? [10% of points]
c) Briefly describe the shape of the production function that underlies your company’s cost
structure given in the table, and explain the reasons for this shape. [10% of points]
Coursework 2 [to be submitted by 2pm on Friday 24th March 2023 via Turnitin]
Question 3 (40% of points): A monopolist serves a market with five potential buyers, each of
whom would buy at most one piece of the monopolist’s good. Anna would be willing to pay up to
£50 for it, Bob up to £70, Chloe up to £90, Dave up to £110 and Elizabeth up to £130. The
monopolist’s variable cost function is given in below table.
[Note: In parts (a) and (b), working outs only need to be shown for at least one result per line of the
table.]
Quantity 1 2 3 4 5
Marginal Costs 50 55 60 65 70
Price
Marg.
Revenue
Quantity 0 1 2 3 4 5
Total Cost 200 700 1,400 2,300 3,600 5,200
Marginal Cost –
Average
Variable Cost
–
Marg.
Revenue
–
Average
Revenue
–
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a) Indicate in the table which price the monopolist would want to charge for each given
quantity. [10% of points]
b) Find the marginal revenue for each quantity. [10% of points]
c) Find the monopolist’s profit maximising quantity. [5% of points]
d) Find the total surplus maximising (i.e., socially optimal) quantity. [5% of points]
e) Quantify the Deadweight Loss! [10% of points]
Question 4 (60% of points): The diagram below shows a monopolist’s marginal cost schedule
and the demand curve. Find and depict the following items within the diagram and briefly explain
how you found them:
a) Find and highlight the consumer surplus in the monopoly in the diagram. [12% of points]
b) Draw a possible marginal cost curve for the monopolist into the diagram that is consistent
with all the other curves that are already given. [24% of points]
c) Based on the marginal cost curve that you constructed in part (b), find and highlight the
monopolist’s total costs at the monopoly price in the diagram. [12% of points]
d) Briefly (200 words max) explain the shape of the marginal revenue curve as compared to
the demand curve in the diagram. [12% of points]
Quantity
Price
Demand
Marginal
Revenue
Total Surplus
Maximising
Quantity
Monopoly
Price
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Coursework 3 [to be submitted by 2pm on Tuesday 2nd May 2023 via Turnitin]
Question 5 (50% of points): Your first job after graduation is in the statistical office of the small
country Exemplia, where most people are employed in olive groves and love eating olives. Based
on the most important transactions in Exemplia summarised in below table, you are tasked with
national accounting.
2021 2022
Price Quantity Price Quantity
Olives (domestic consumption) 2 2,000 2.20 2,500
Olives (export) 2 4,000 2.20 3,000
Potatoes imported 1 1,000 1 800
Government‘s tax income 1,000 1 900 1
Government’s purchase of imported
chairs
9 100 8 125
Olive picking machines (imported) 100 10 110 10
a) On the basis of the information in the table only, calculate the nominal GDP and all of its
components (C, I, G, NX) for 2021 and 2022. [15% of points]
b) Using 2021 as the base year, calculate real GDP for 2022. [5% of points]
c) Again using 2021 as the base year, calculate the GDP deflator for 2021 and 2022, and the
inflation rate for 2022 based on the GDP deflator. [10% of points]
d) Briefly discuss the most important differences between the calculation of the GDP deflator
and the CPI and their consequences. [20% of points]
Question 6 (50% of points): Consider the Swan-Solow model of economic growth. In questions
(a) – (d), you are supposed to graphically construct the steady state in this model. In question (e),
you will apply the model
a) Draw a suitable diagram with a typical Aggregate Production Function in it. [5% of points]
b) Draw a typical Investment curve into the diagram. Briefly explain how you came up with the
curve and what you need to know to exactly pin it down. [10% of points]
c) Draw a typical Depreciation curve into the diagram. Briefly explain how you came up with
the curve and what you need to know to exactly pin it down. [10% of points]
d) Briefly define the steady state and show it in your diagram. [5% of points]
e) A major shift in people’s values causes them to save less and spend more as a percentage
of their income. Analyse the effects of this change on each of the curves in your diagram,
and find the new steady state. Briefly discuss your finding in the context of economic
growth. [20% of points]
Key Marking criteria for all three coursework assignments will include:
• Correctness of economic analysis.
• Ability to synthesise material delivered in lectures and apply it to addressing specific problems;
• Ability to construct accurate diagrammatic representations of economic theory.
• Ability to briefly explain elements of economic models.
Submission
The main assignment must be submitted by 2pm on Monday 27th February 2023 (Coursework
1), 2pm on Friday 24th March 2023 (Coursework 2) and 2pm on Tuesday 2nd May 2023
(Coursework 3), respectively, via Turnitin. Students can expect to receive individual feedback on
their work via Turnitin within three weeks from the submission deadlines.
Please note:
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• The maximum file size that can be uploaded is 20mb. If the file is larger than this it is usually
because it includes a lot of images – these should either be removed, if possible, or converted
to a more efficient format to reduce the file size (e.g. .png or .gif).
• Students should ensure that their student number is part of the title of the filename for the
work submitted/uploaded.
• IMPORTANT: Any student submitting an assessment past the published deadline without
submitting a request for Extenuating Circumstances (in line with the Extenuating
Circumstances Policy) will be deemed to have not submitted and receive a mark of 0% for
the assessment.
Students who are likely to be prevented from meeting the assessment deadline due to
extenuating circumstances should notify the School by emailing extenuatingsocialsciences@swansea.ac.uk as soon as possible before the assessment deadline.
Please refer to the Extenuating Circumstances Policy for further information.
Digital Submission of Coursework Instructions
• Logon to Canvas
• Access the appropriate Course site from your dashboard.
• Click the Assignments menu button which appears on the left of the screen.
• Click on the relevant assignment for submission.
• In this page students will see a file entitled ‘Submission coversheet’. Students need to
complete this form and incorporate it as the first page of their coursework (not two separate
files).
• Students should read the statement of originality before clicking By
submitting work they are agreeing to this statement and confirming it to be true.
• Click to select your assignment file.
• Click to upload an assignment.
• Click to finalise the submission
• A message saying “Submission Complete” will then appear.
• Students can then download a submission receipt by clicking on this icon on the
Assignment Dashboard. Students should download and keep this receipt safe as evidence
of their submission.
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Please direct any assessment related queries to assessment-socialsciences@swansea.ac.uk
Notes on Style and Word Count
Assignments are a critical part of the learning experience and development for scholars at Swansea
University. Practice will pay dividends when it comes to honing your skills in report and essay writing.
Students are therefore encouraged to submit the highest quality work they can to reach their
maximum potential. Students with concerns about how to present their work can consult with the
Module Co-ordinator for guidance in addition to the notes listed below:
The maximum word limit for the each of the three Coursework assignments (excluding tables,
contents page, footnotes, charts, graphs, figures, reference lists but including in-text references) is
1000 words. The word count must be stated in the assignment cover sheet.
Students are required to adhere to the maximum word limits and should note their final
assignment/examination word count in the space provided on the accompanying cover sheet.
Students will incur a 5-mark penalty for exceeding the word limit. Please note that word counts
should not include cover sheets, bibliographical footnotes, or bibliographies.
Students who submit work that is below the word limit will not be penalised. This is because
students will not have taken full advantage of the word limit available to them, which in itself may
constitute a penalty.
The assignment should be in extended essay format (i.e. use headings/sub-headings). Full
academic referencing using the Harvard APA (7th Edition) referencing style should be used
throughout the assignment. Guidance on how to reference using the APA style can be found at:
APA Referencing Guide: https://libguides.swansea.ac.uk/APA7Referencing
To gain higher marks students are required to show analysis and reflection rather than simple
description. They should use multiple sources of academic literature to frame and justify their
analysis. All sources should be correctly identified – students are reminded the University enforces
strict penalties for plagiarism (up to and including withdrawal from the University).
Correct English spelling and grammar should be used at all times. Students who have been formally
diagnosed with specific learning difficulties (SpLD) will be contacted by the disability office and will
be supplied with a specific cover sheet.
Video, Audio or other Assessment Types
For some assessments students may be required to submit a video, audio or other digital media
item. The University’s overarching privacy policy advises students that the University will collect
photographs and video recordings for the purpose of recording lectures, student assessment and
examinations. This processing and storage of this information is lawful as it is necessary for the
performance of a contract with the student and will apply to any personal data that we process for
the purposes of administering and delivering their course of study.
Student Privacy Notice – Swansea University
Proof Reading
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Please be aware of the university’s Proof Reading policy which sets outs what the university
considers to be good academic practice in relation to proof reading. Further information can be found
by accessing the proof reading policy
Good Academic Practice
Academic integrity is fundamental to the values promoted by Swansea University. It is important that
all students are judged on their ability, and that no student is allowed unfairly to take an advantage
over others, to affect the security and integrity of the assessment process, or to diminish the reliability
and quality of the qualification awarded.
Academic misconduct is to commit any act where a student may obtain an unpermitted advantage
for themselves or another. This can relate to any form of assessed work including:
• Open book examination taken on-line
• A piece of coursework
• Any form of assessment undertaken in pursuit of an academic or professional qualification
at Swansea University.
Academic misconduct can be committed on an individual or group basis.
There are different types of academic misconduct including:
• Plagiarism
• Collusion
• Commissioning
The University takes academic misconduct very seriously and it can have a detrimental effect on
your results as where academic misconduct is found to have taken place penalties will be applied.
Students should note that a claim of ignorance of the University’s expectations on good academic
practice is not an acceptable defence to an allegation of academic misconduct.
Self-plagiarism is the copying of work that was originally completed and submitted by the
student and resubmitted for another purpose, without acknowledgement. While self-plagiarism is
not considered as academic misconduct by the University it is treated as poor academic practice by
the School and this is reflected in the marks awarded.
How can students learn about good academic practice?
Help with correct referencing is available from the School’s Library Subject Team – you can make
an appointment with a subject librarians for help with referencing. Access The library online
referencing guide for the School of Social Sciences. At the start of term the library offers induction
sessions for new and continuing students and targeted sessions throughout the academic year. You
can also access information on good academic practice through the Swansea Academy of Academic
Success More information on their services can be found on their web pages.
Swansea Academy of Academic Success also provide a short online course on good academic
practice which can be access through the Academic Success pages. Following completion of the
self-directed learning, there is an online quiz (takes about 5 minutes), which assesses your level of
understanding of the learning material. You can revisit the training material and retake the quiz as
many times as you wish.
Full information on Academic Misconduct can be found in the Academic Misconduct Procedure.
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School of Social Sciences
MN-2565 Economics for Business
Module Schedule
Teaching
Week
Topic Lecture Contents Seminar Contents Key Readings:
Mankiw/Taylor
1
w/c
30/1
Introduction to
Economics and
economic thinking.
Supply, Demand
and Market
Equilibrium
The aim of this topic is to introduce the microeconomic model of the
market for a particular good or service. After working through this topic,
students will understand what the supply curve and demand curve are,
which events cause a move along each curve or a shift of a curve, how
these curves determine market equilibrium, and the importance of the
slope of each curve and how to measure it.
Introduction to the module
and the seminar tutor
Chapters 1-3
2
w/c
6/2
Consumer Theory
and the Shape and
Position of the
Demand Curve
The aim of this topic is to show how market demand curves are only
based on optimal purchase decisions where consumers determine
which of two consumption bundles they prefer subject to their budget
constraint.
Supply, demand, elasticity Chapter 4
3
w/c
13/2
Production Theory
and the Supply
Curve in a Perfectly
Competitive Market
In this topic, we will analyse firms’ optimal output decisions depending
on their cost function (how much it costs them to produce a certain
amount of output), and on the output market. In a second step, we will
use this result to derive the market supply curve.
Consumer choices and
demand
Chapter 5
4
w/c
20/2
Welfare Analysis
and Market Failure
This topic is concerned with evaluating how much a particular situation
benefits consumers, producers and society as a whole. We will show
that, for a certain type of goods, the equilibrium of a perfectly
competitive market is efficient, and we will explore reasons why
markets may fail.
Production choices and
supply
Chapter 6, and parts of
Chapters 8 and 9
5
w/c
27/2
Monopoly In this topic, we will analyse a monopolist’s optimal price and quantity
choices, compare the outcome with that under perfect competition and
determine the welfare loss stemming from this market structure.
Efficiency and market failure Chapter 11
6
w/c
6/3
The Data of
Macroeconomics:
GDP, Prices
Introduction to Macroeconomics and its basic measures: GDP, prices,
unemployment
Imperfect competition Chapter 20
13
Teaching
Week
Topic Lecture Contents Seminar Contents Key Readings:
Mankiw/Taylor
7
w/c
13/3
Unemployment;
Economic Growth
Measurement of and reasons for unemployment;
Solow’s growth model
GDP, prices Chapters 21-22
8
w/c
20/3
The Monetary
System
Functions and types of money, the role of central banks and monetary
policy, inflation
Unemployment; Economic
Growth
Chapter 24
9
w/c
27/3
Aggregate Demand
and Supply in the
Short and Long Run
This topic introduces the macroeconomic model of Aggregate Demand
and Aggregate Supply. Students will learn how the basic diagram of
this model originates in assumptions on the macroeconomy and how to
use the model to perform comparative-statics analysis.
Money, Monetary Policy and
Inflation
Chapter 28
10
w/c
24/4
The Effects of Fiscal
and Monetary Policy
In this topic, the AD/AS model introduced in the previous topic will be
used to analyse the effects of fiscal and monetary policy in the short
and long run.
Money, Monetary Policy and
Inflation
Chapters 29-30
11
w/c
1/5
– Exam preparation:
• Worked mock examination/ example answers
• Format of exam and past papers.
• What to expect from an on-line open book exam.
• Dos and Don’ts
How to reference lecture notes.
Fiscal and Monetary Policy. School of Management –
Student Guide to on-line
examinations

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