• Title/Summary/Keyword: Marginal cost

Search Result 287, Processing Time 0.027 seconds

The changes of economic though (The trial of supply-side economics) (경제사상의 변화 (공급측면 경제학의 시험))

  • 서홍석
    • Journal of Applied Tourism Food and Beverage Management and Research
    • /
    • v.8
    • /
    • pp.89-121
    • /
    • 1997
  • Many of the measures and policies advocated by supply-siders, such as lower taxation, less government intervention, more freedom from restrictive legislation and regulation, and the need for increased productivity can be found in writing the classical economist. Nor is supply-side economics a complete divorcement from Keynesian analysis. In both camps the objectives are the same-high level employment, stable prices and healthy economic growth, the means or suggestions for attaining the objectives, however, differ. Consequently, recommended economic policies and measures are different. keynesians rely primarily on the manipulation of effective demand to increase output and employment and to combat inflation. They assume ample resources to be available in order that supply will respond to demand. The supply-siders emphasize the need to increase savings, investment, productivity and output as a means of increasing income. Supply-siders assume that the increase in income will lead to an increase in effective demand. Keynesians suggest that savings, particularly those not invested, dampen economic activity. Supply-siders hold that savings, or at least an increase in after-tax income, stimulates work effort and provides funds for investment. Perhaps keynesians are guilty of assuming that most savings are not going to be invested, whereas supply-siders may erroneously assume that almost all savings will flow into investment and/ or stimulate work effort. In reality, a middle ground is possible. The supply-siders stress the need to increase supply, but Keynes did not preclude the possibility of increasing economic activity by working through the supply side. According to Keynes' aggregate demand-aggregate supply framework, a decrease in supply will increase output and employment. It must be remembered, however, that Keynes' aggregate supply is really a price. Lowering the price or cost of supply would there by result in higher profit and/ or higher output. This coincides with the viewpoint of supply-siders who want to lower the cost of production via various means for the purpose of increasing supply. Then, too, some of the means, such as tax cuts, tax credits and accelerated depreciation, recommended by suply-siders to increase productivity and output would be favored by Keynesians also as a means of increasing investment, curbing costs, and increasing effective demand. In fact, these very measures were used in the early 1960s in the United State during the years when nagging unemployment was plaguing the economy. Keynesians disagree with the supply-siders' proposals to reduce transfer payments and slow down the process of income redistribution, except in full employment inflationary periods. Keynesians likewise disagree with tax measures that favored business as opposed to individuals and the notion of shifting the base of personal taxation away from income and toward spending. A frequent criticism levied at supply-side economics is that it lacks adequate models and thus far has not been quantified to any great extent. But, it should be remembered that Keynesian economics originally was lacking in models and based on a number of unproved assumptions, such as, the stability of the consumption function with its declining marginal propensity to consume. Just as the economic catastrophe of the great depression of the 1930s paved the way for the application of Keynesian or demand-side policies, perhaps the frustrating and restless conditions of the 1970s and 1980s is an open invitation for the application of supply-side policies. If so, the 1980s and 1990s may prove to be the testing era for the supply-side theories. By the end of 1990s we should have better supply-side models and know much more about the effectiveness of supply-side policies. By that time, also, supply-side thinking may be more crystallized and we will learn whether it is something temporary that will fade away, be widely accepted as the new economics replacing Keynesian demand analysis, or something to be continued but melded or fused with demand management.

  • PDF

Patients satisfaction for implant supported overdenture with small diameter implant (작은 직경 임플란트를 이용한 임플란트 지지 피개의치에 대한 환자 만족도 조사)

  • Lee, Sang-Yeup;Choi, Dae-Gyun;Paek, Jang-Hyun;Kwon, Kung-Rock
    • The Journal of Korean Academy of Prosthodontics
    • /
    • v.49 no.1
    • /
    • pp.29-37
    • /
    • 2011
  • Purpose: In cases when implant supported overdenture is made by using standard size implant, additional procedure such as bone surgery and bone grafting can be required. And it gives burden to doctor and patient in terms of cost. Therefore, it is necessary to find the implant therapy for the edentulous patients in making denture with accordable cost and simple procedure. Materials and methods: Edentulous patients with upper and lower dentures participated in this study. Before the operation, survey about patient's satisfaction to the existing dentures was carried out. Surgical procedures included four small diameter implants installation anterior area and immediate loading. One and three month after the procedure, the same survey about patient's satisfaction was carried out, and radiography was taken. Results: We are doing research to the nine patients. Survival rate is 97.2 percent. The comparison of patient's satisfaction before and after surgery is performed based on oral health impact profile 49. We analyze mainly with masticatory discomfort, retention, aesthetics, social problem, psychological discomfort problems. As a result, satisfaction level is increased at all factors. Retention is the most increased satisfactory factor followed by mastication difficulty, pronunciation, psychological discomfort, social discomfort, aesthetics in order. Marginal bone loss is 0.21 mm at 12 weeks after implant placement. Conclusion: This research reveals that the denture supported by mini dental implant increases patient's satisfaction. This study will be continued with more patients for a long time and we are scheduled for taking additional radiography to check whether peri-implant bone resorption occurs or not.

The Effects of Product Line Rivalry: Focusing on the Issue of Fighting Brands (경쟁산품선적영향(竞争产品线的影响): 관주전두품패(关注战斗品牌))

  • Koh, Dong-Hee
    • Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
    • /
    • v.19 no.4
    • /
    • pp.24-31
    • /
    • 2009
  • Firms produce various products that differ by function, design, color, etc. Product proliferation occurs for three different reasons. When there exist economies of scope, the unit cost for a product is lower when it is produced in conjunction with another product than when it is produced separately. Second, consumers are heterogeneous in the sense that they have different tastes, preferences, or price elasticities. A firm can earn more profit by segmenting consumers into different groups with similar characteristics. For example, product proliferation helps a firm increase profits by satisfying various consumer needs more precisely. The third reason for product proliferation is based on strategy. Producing a number of products can not only deter entry by providing few niches, but can also cause a firm to react efficiently to a low-price entry. By producing various products, a firm can reduce niches so that potential entrants have less incentive to enter. Moreover, a firm can produce new products in response to entry, which is called fighting brands. That is, when an entrant tries to attract consumers with a low price, an incumbent introduces a new lower-quality product while maintaining the price of the existing product. The drawback of product proliferation, however, is cannibalization. Some consumers who would have bought a high-price product switch to a low-price product. Moreover, it is possible that proliferation can decrease profits when a new product is less differentiated from a rival’s than is the existing product because of more severe competition. Many studies have analyzed the effect of product line rivalry in the areas of economics and marketing. They show how a monopolist can solve the problem of cannibalization by adjusting quality in a market where consumers differ in their preferences for quality. They find that a consumer who prefers high-quality products will obtain his or her most preferred quality, but a consumer who has not such preference will obtain less than his or her preferred quality to reduce cannibalization. This study analyzed the effects of product line rivalry in a duopoly market with two types of consumers differentiated by quality preference. I assume that the two firms are asymmetric in the sense that an incumbent can produce both high- and low-quality products, while an entrant can produce only a low-quality product. The effects of product proliferation can be explained by comparing the market outcomes when an incumbent produces both products to those when it produces only one product. Compared to the case in which an incumbent produces only a high-quality product, the price of a low-quality product tends to decrease in a consumer segment that prefers low-quality products because of more severe competition. Prices, however, tend to increase in a segment with high preferences because of less severe competition. It is known that when firms compete over prices, it is optimal for a firm to increase its price when its rival increases its price, which is called a strategic complement. Since prices are strategic complements, we have two opposing effects. It turns out that the price of a high-quality product increases because the positive effect of reduced competition outweighs the negative effect of strategic complements. This implies that an incumbent needs to increase the price of a high-quality product when it is also introducing a low-quality product. However, the change in price of the entrant’s low-quality product is ambiguous. Second, compared to the case in which an incumbent produces only a low-quality product, prices tend to increase in a consumer segment with low preferences but decrease in a segment with high preferences. The prices of low-quality products decrease because the negative effect outweighs the positive effect. Moreover, when an incumbent produces both kinds of product, the price of an incumbent‘s low-quality product is higher, even though the quality of both firms’ low-quality products is the same. The reason for this is that the incumbent has less incentive to reduce the price of a low-quality product because of the negative impact on the price of its high-quality product. In fact, the effects of product line rivalry on profits depend not only on changes in price, but also on sales and cannibalization. If the difference in marginal cost is moderate compared to the difference in product quality, the positive effect of product proliferation outweighs the negative effect, thereby increasing the profit. Furthermore, if the cost difference is very large (small), an incumbent is better off producing only a low (high) quality product. Moreover, this study also analyzed the effect of product line rivalry when a firm can determine product characteristics by focusing on the issue of fighting brands. Recently, Korean air and Asiana airlines have established budget airlines called Jin air and Air Busan, respectively, to confront the launching of budget airlines such as Hansung airline and Jeju air, among others. In addition, as more online bookstores have entered the market, a leading off-line bookstore Kyobo began its own online bookstore. Through fighting brands, an incumbent with a high-quality product can increase profits by producing an additional low-quality product when its low-quality product is more differentiated from that of the entrant than is its high-quality product.

  • PDF

Structural Adjustment of Domestic Firms in the Era of Market Liberalization (시장개방(市場開放)과 국내기업(國內企業)의 구조조정(構造調整))

  • Seong, So-mi
    • KDI Journal of Economic Policy
    • /
    • v.13 no.4
    • /
    • pp.91-116
    • /
    • 1991
  • Market liberalization progressing simultaneously with high and rapidly rising domestic wages has created an adverse business environment for domestic firms. Korean firms are losing their international competitiveness in comparison to firms from LDC(Less Developed Countries) in low-tech industries. In high-tech industries, domestic firms without government protection (which is impossible due to the liberalization policy and the current international status of the Korean economy) are in a disadvantaged position relative to firms from advanced countries. This paper examines the division of roles between the private sector and the government in order to achieve a successful structural adjustment, which has become the impending industrial policy issue caused by high domestic wages, on the one hand, and the opening of domestic markets, on the other. The micro foundation of the economy-wide structural adjustment is actually the restructuring of business portfolios at the firm level. The firm-level business restructuring means that firms in low-value-added businesses or with declining market niches establish new major businesses in higher value-added segments or growing market niches. The adjustment of the business structure at the firm level can only be accomplished by accumulating firm-specific managerial assets necessary to establish a new business structure. This can be done through learning-by-doing in the whole system of management, including research and development, manufacturing, and marketing. Therefore, the voluntary cooperation among the people in the company is essential for making the cost of the learning process lower than that at the competing companies. Hence, firms that attempt to restructure their major businesses need to induce corporate-wide participation through innovations in organization and management, encourage innovative corporate culture, and maintain cooperative labor unions. Policy discussions on structural adjustments usually regard firms as a black box behind a few macro variables. But in reality, firm activities are not flows of materials but relationships among human resources. The growth potential of companies are embodied in the human resources of the firm; the balance of interest among stockholders, managers, and workers of the company' brings the accumulation of the company's core competencies. Therefore, policymakers and economists shoud change their old concept of the firm as a technological black box which produces a marketable commodities. Firms should be regarded as coalitions of interest groups such as stockholders, managers, and workers. Consequently the discussion on the structural adjustment both at the macroeconomic level and the firm level should be based on this new paradigm of understanding firms. The government's role in reducing the cost of structural adjustment and supporting should the creation of new industries emphasize the following: First, government must promote the competition in domestic markets by revising laws related to antitrust policy, bankruptcy, and the promotion of small and medium-sized companies. General consensus on the limitations of government intervention and the merit of deregulation should be sought among policymakers and people in the business world. In the age of internationalization, nation-specific competitive advantages cannot be exclusively in favor of domestic firms. The international competitiveness of a domestic firm derives from the firm-specific core competencies which can be accumulated by internal investment and organization of the firm. Second, government must build up a solid infrastructure of production factors including capital, technology, manpower, and information. Structural adjustment often entails bankruptcies and partial waste of resources. However, it is desirable for the government not to try to sustain marginal businesses, but to support the diversification or restructuring of businesses by assisting in factor creation. Institutional support for venture businesses needs to be improved, especially in the financing system since many investment projects in venture businesses are highly risky, even though they are very promising. The proportion of low-value added production processes and declining industries should be reduced by promoting foreign direct investment and factory automation. Moreover, one cannot over-emphasize the importance of future-oriented labor policies to be based on the new paradigm of understanding firm activities. The old laws and instititutions related to labor unions need to be reformed. Third, government must improve the regimes related to money, banking, and the tax system to change business practices dependent on government protection or undesirable in view of the evolution of the Korean economy as a whole. To prevent rational business decisions from contradicting to the interest of the economy as a whole, government should influence the business environment, not the business itself.

  • PDF

The Growth Phase and Yield Difference of Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) on Soil Salinity in Reclaimed Land (간척지에서 토양 염농도별 케나프의 생육반응 및 수량성)

  • Kang, Chan-Ho;Choi, Weon-Young;Yoo, Young-Jin;Choi, Kyu-Hwan;Kim, Hyo-Jin;Song, Young-Ju;Kim, Chung-Kon
    • KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
    • /
    • v.59 no.4
    • /
    • pp.511-520
    • /
    • 2014
  • Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) was recognized as a potential source of forage. To reduce the production cost, we should insure large cultivation area. The one of the best candidate places to expand the useful kenaf production was 'Saemangeum' reclaimed land. To confirm the possibility of kenaf growth in reclaimed land, we seeding and cultivated the kenaf in 'Saemangeum'. The germination percentage of kenaf on 5.0 dS/m soil salinity was 18%. It is less 66% than that of 4.0 dS/m soil salinity and at 6.0 dS/m, the germination percentage of kenaf was under 10%. The growth and development of kenaf in reclaimed land grew worse with increasing soil salinity. The stem diameter which the most important factor that decide the value and yield of product was upper 2.6 cm when soil salinity maintained under 4.0 dS/m, but if soil salinity marked over 4.0 dS/m, the stem diameter of kenaf was drop under 2.0 cm and it deteriorate the number of leaves per plant by 20~46%. The necrosis on older tip and marginal leaves were noted approximately first month after seeding which was correlated directly with the salinity levels of reclaimed soil. Reduction of total yield was coincide with increasing levels of EC. If soil salinity over 5.0 dS/m, the amount of decreased by soil salinity was 51% than that of non-reclaimed region. The allowable soil salinity level of which could be maintained within 20% reduction rate was 4.2 dS/m. Consequently kenaf can be grown successfully with moderately saline soil condition. However, salt levels in excess of 4.2 dS/m severely have restricted plant growth and development and will result in significant yield reduction.

Simulation of Pension Finance and Its Economic Effects (연금재정(年金財政) 시뮬레이션과 경제적(經濟的) 파급효과(波及效果))

  • Min, Jae-sung;Kim, Yong-ha
    • KDI Journal of Economic Policy
    • /
    • v.13 no.1
    • /
    • pp.115-134
    • /
    • 1991
  • The role of pension plans in the macroeconomy has been a subject of much interest for some years. It has come to be recognized that pension plans may alter basic macroeconomic behavior patterns. The net effects on both savings and labor supply are thus matters for speculation. The aim of the present paper is to provide quantitative results which may be helpful in attaching orders of magnitude to some of the possible effects. We are not concerned with the providing empirical evidence relating to actual behavior, but rather with deriving the macroeconomic implications for a alternative possibilities. The pension plan interacts with the economy and the population in a number of ways. Demographic variables may thus affect both the economic burden of a national pension plan and the ability of the economy to sustain the burden. The tax transfer process associated with the pension plan may have implications for national patterns of saving and consumption. The existence of a pension plan may have implications also for the size of the labor force, inasmuch as labor force participation rates may be affected. Changes in technology and the associated changes in average productivity levels bear directly on the size of the national income, and hence on the pension contribution base. The vehicle for the analysis is a hypothetical but broadly realistic simulation model of an economic- demographic system into which is inserted a national pension plan. All income, expenditure, and related aggregates are in real terms. The economy is basically neoclassical; full employment is assumed, output is generated by a Cobb-Douglas production process, and factors receive their marginal products. The model was designed for use in computer simulation experiments. The simulation results suggest a number of general conclusions. These may be summarized as follows; - The introduction of a national pension plan (funded system) tends to increase the rate of economic growth until cost exceeds revenue. - A scheme with full wage indexing is more expensive than one in which pensions are merely price indexed. - The rate of technical progress is not a critical element in determining the economic burden of the pension scheme. - Raising the rate of benefits affects its economic burden, and raising the age of eligibility may decrease the burden substantially. - The level of fertility is an element in determining the long-run burden. A sustained low fertility rate increases the proportion of the aged in total population and increases the burden of the pension plan. High fertility has inverse effects.

  • PDF

The Impact of the Internet Channel Introduction Depending on the Ownership of the Internet Channel (도입주체에 따른 인터넷경로의 도입효과)

  • Yoo, Weon-Sang
    • Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science
    • /
    • v.19 no.1
    • /
    • pp.37-46
    • /
    • 2009
  • The Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced in May 2008 that U.S. retail e-commerce sales for 2006 reached $ 107 billion, up from $ 87 billion in 2005 - an increase of 22 percent. From 2001 to 2006, retail e-sales increased at an average annual growth rate of 25.4 percent. The explosive growth of E-Commerce has caused profound changes in marketing channel relationships and structures in many industries. Despite the great potential implications for both academicians and practitioners, there still exists a great deal of uncertainty about the impact of the Internet channel introduction on distribution channel management. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the ownership of the new Internet channel affects the existing channel members and consumers. To explore the above research questions, this study conducts well-controlled mathematical experiments to isolate the impact of the Internet channel by comparing before and after the Internet channel entry. The model consists of a monopolist manufacturer selling its product through a channel system including one independent physical store before the entry of an Internet store. The addition of the Internet store to this channel system results in a mixed channel comprised of two different types of channels. The new Internet store can be launched by the independent physical store such as Bestbuy. In this case, the physical retailer coordinates the two types of stores to maximize the joint profits from the two stores. The Internet store also can be introduced by an independent Internet retailer such as Amazon. In this case, a retail level competition occurs between the two types of stores. Although the manufacturer sells only one product, consumers view each product-outlet pair as a unique offering. Thus, the introduction of the Internet channel provides two product offerings for consumers. The channel structures analyzed in this study are illustrated in Fig.1. It is assumed that the manufacturer plays as a Stackelberg leader maximizing its own profits with the foresight of the independent retailer's optimal responses as typically assumed in previous analytical channel studies. As a Stackelberg follower, the independent physical retailer or independent Internet retailer maximizes its own profits, conditional on the manufacturer's wholesale price. The price competition between two the independent retailers is assumed to be a Bertrand Nash game. For simplicity, the marginal cost is set at zero, as typically assumed in this type of study. In order to explore the research questions above, this study develops a game theoretic model that possesses the following three key characteristics. First, the model explicitly captures the fact that an Internet channel and a physical store exist in two independent dimensions (one in physical space and the other in cyber space). This enables this model to demonstrate that the effect of adding an Internet store is different from that of adding another physical store. Second, the model reflects the fact that consumers are heterogeneous in their preferences for using a physical store and for using an Internet channel. Third, the model captures the vertical strategic interactions between an upstream manufacturer and a downstream retailer, making it possible to analyze the channel structure issues discussed in this paper. Although numerous previous models capture this vertical dimension of marketing channels, none simultaneously incorporates the three characteristics reflected in this model. The analysis results are summarized in Table 1. When the new Internet channel is introduced by the existing physical retailer and the retailer coordinates both types of stores to maximize the joint profits from the both stores, retail prices increase due to a combination of the coordination of the retail prices and the wider market coverage. The quantity sold does not significantly increase despite the wider market coverage, because the excessively high retail prices alleviate the market coverage effect to a degree. Interestingly, the coordinated total retail profits are lower than the combined retail profits of two competing independent retailers. This implies that when a physical retailer opens an Internet channel, the retailers could be better off managing the two channels separately rather than coordinating them, unless they have the foresight of the manufacturer's pricing behavior. It is also found that the introduction of an Internet channel affects the power balance of the channel. The retail competition is strong when an independent Internet store joins a channel with an independent physical retailer. This implies that each retailer in this structure has weak channel power. Due to intense retail competition, the manufacturer uses its channel power to increase its wholesale price to extract more profits from the total channel profit. However, the retailers cannot increase retail prices accordingly because of the intense retail level competition, leading to lower channel power. In this case, consumer welfare increases due to the wider market coverage and lower retail prices caused by the retail competition. The model employed for this study is not designed to capture all the characteristics of the Internet channel. The theoretical model in this study can also be applied for any stores that are not geographically constrained such as TV home shopping or catalog sales via mail. The reasons the model in this study is names as "Internet" are as follows: first, the most representative example of the stores that are not geographically constrained is the Internet. Second, catalog sales usually determine the target markets using the pre-specified mailing lists. In this aspect, the model used in this study is closer to the Internet than catalog sales. However, it would be a desirable future research direction to mathematically and theoretically distinguish the core differences among the stores that are not geographically constrained. The model is simplified by a set of assumptions to obtain mathematical traceability. First, this study assumes the price is the only strategic tool for competition. In the real world, however, various marketing variables can be used for competition. Therefore, a more realistic model can be designed if a model incorporates other various marketing variables such as service levels or operation costs. Second, this study assumes the market with one monopoly manufacturer. Therefore, the results from this study should be carefully interpreted considering this limitation. Future research could extend this limitation by introducing manufacturer level competition. Finally, some of the results are drawn from the assumption that the monopoly manufacturer is the Stackelberg leader. Although this is a standard assumption among game theoretic studies of this kind, we could gain deeper understanding and generalize our findings beyond this assumption if the model is analyzed by different game rules.

  • PDF