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					                                   EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY
                                   FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
                                 DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

                                            Discussion Questions and Problems
                                          (Reference chapter 3; D. Salvatore; 2004)

Discussion Questions:

    1 Agricultural commodities are known to have a price inelastic demand and to be neccessities. How can this
    information allow us to explain why the income of farmers falls.
    (a) after a good harvest?
    (b) In relation to the incomes in other sectors of the econımy?

    2     (a) What other elasticities of demand are there besides price, income, and cross price? (b) What is the usefulness to
    the firm of the elasticity of demand for the over which the firm has control? (c) of the elasticity demand over which
    the firm has control? (d) Why is it essential for the firm to use the elasticity of all the variables included in the demand

    3    .(a) Why are tastes converging around the world? (b) What is the importance of this for US firms?

    4    How is e –commerce revolutionizing the business world?


    1.   Suppose that GM’s Smith estimated the following regression equation for Chevrolet automobiles:

                           Qc=100.000-100Pc+2.000N+50I+30Pf -1.000Pc+3A+40.000PI

Where             Qc= quantity demanded per year of Chevrolet automobiles
                  Pc= price of chevrolet automobiles, in dollars
                  N= population of the US, in millions
                   I= per capita disposable income, in dollars
                  Pf= price of ford automobiles, in dollars
                  Pg= real price of gasoline, in cents per gallon
                  A=advertising expenditures by Chevrolet, in per dollars per year
                  PI= credit incentives to purchase Chevrolets, in percentage points below
                          the rate of interest on borrowing in the absence of incentives.

                 dependent or explanatory variables.
             (b) Find the value of Qc if the avarage value of Pc= 9000$, N= 200 million, I= 10000$, Pf=8000$ , Pg=80
                 cents, A= $200.000 and if PI=1
             (c) Derive the equation for demand curve for Chevrolets and (d) plot it.

    2.   Starting with the estimated demand function for Chevrolets given Problem 1, assume that the avarage value of the
         independent variables changes to N= 225 million, I= 12.000$ , Pf=10.000$ , Pg= 100 cents, A=250.000$ and PI=
         0( i.e incentives phased out).
              (a) Find the equation of the new demand curve for Chevrolets and (b) plot this new demand curve Dc’, and
                   on the same graph, plot the demand curve Chevrolets Dc, found in problem 1 (d). (c) what is the
                   relationship between Dc and D’c ? What explains this relationship?

    3.   The Ice cream Parlor is the only ice cream parlor in Smithtown. Michael, the son of the owner, has just come back
         from college, where he majors in business administration. In his course in managerial economics, Michael has just
         studied demand analysis, and he decides to apply what he has learned to estimate the demand for ice cream in his
         father’s parlor during his summer vacation. Using regression analysis, Michael estimates the following demand

        QI= 120-20PI

    Where suscript I refers to ice cream portions served per day in his father’s parlor, and PI is the dollar price. Michael
    then sets out (a) derive the demand schedule for ice cream and plot it, (b) find the point price elasticity of demand at
    each dollar price from P= $6 to P=     $ 0 (c) find the arc price elasticity of the demand at each dollar price,(i.e.
    between P= $6 and P=$5, P= $5 to P=$4 and so on). Show how Michael would get his results.

    4   The total operating revenues of a public transportation authority are $100 million while its total operating costs are
        from $120 million. The price of a ride is from $1, and the price elasticity of demand for public transportation has
    been estimated to be -0.4. By law, the public transportation authority must take steps to eliminate its operar-ting deficit.
    (a) What pricing policy should the transportation authority adopt? (b) What price per ride must the public transportation
    authority charge to eliminate the deficit if it cannot reduce costs?

    5 The coefficient of income in a regression of the quantity demanded of a commodity on price, income, and other
    variables is 10. (a) calculate the income elasticity of demand for this commodity at income of $ 10.000 and sales of
    80.000 units. (b) What would be the income elasticity of demand if sales increased from 80.000 to 90.000 units and
    income rose from $ 10.000 to 11.000 ? What type of good is this commodity?

    6 The coefficient of the price of gasoline in the regression of the quantity demanded of automobiles (in millions of
    units) on the price of gasoline (in dollars) and other variables is -14. (a) calculate the cross price elasticity of demand
    between automobiles and gasoline at the gasoline $ 1 per gallon and sales of automobiles of 8 (million units). (b) What
    would be the cross price elasticity of demand between automobiles and gasoline if sales of automobiles declined from 8
    to 6 with an increase in the gasoline price from $ 1 to $ 1.20 per gallon?

    7 The management of the Mini Mill Steel company estimated the following elasticities for a special type of steel :
    Ep=2, EI=1, EXY= 1.5 and X refers steel and Y refers aliminum. Next year the firm would like to increase the price of
    the steel it sells by 6 percent. The management forecasted that income will rise by 4 percent next year and that the
    price of aliminum will fall by 2 percent. (a) If the sales this year are 1.200 tons of the steel, how many tons can the firm
    expect to sell next year? (b) by what percentage must the firm change the price of steel to keep its sales at 1.200 tons
    next year?

    8    The research department of the Corn Flakes Corporation (CFC) estimated the following regression for the demand
    of the cornflakes it sells.

         QX= 1.0-2.0 PX+ 1.5I+0.8PY-3.0PM+1.0A

    Where         QX=sales of CFC cornflakes, in millions of 10-ounce boxes per year
                  PX= the price of of CFC cornflakes,, in dollars per ounce box
                  I= personal disposable income, in trillions of dollars per year
                  PY = price of competitive brand of cornflakes, in dollars per 10- ounce box
                  PM = price of milk, in dollars per quart
                  A= advertising expenditures of CFC cornflakes, in hundreds of thousands of dollars per year.

This year, PX= $ 1, I=$4, PY = $2.50, PM = $1 and A=$2. (a) calculate the sales of CFC cornflakes this year; (b) calculate
the elasticity of sales with respect to each variable in the demand function; (c) estimate the level of sales next year if CFC
reduces Px by 10 percent, inreases advertising by 20 percent, I rises by 5 percent, PY is reduced by 10 percent, and PM
remains unchanged. (d) By how much should CFC change its advertising if it wants its sales to be 30 percent higher than
this year?