IB Econ HL Section B

In Chicago, parking meters are a profitable deal. In fact, Chicago's parking meter operators are bringing in a profit of approximately $1.1 million per week. Recently, Chicago Parking Meters LLC purchased the right to all parking fees in the city for the next 75 years. The profits will be huge, especially with the city's 36,000 parking meters.

Small carmakers continue producing a wide range of cars that can appeal to various customers. The most noticeable factor is the variety of brands competing with one another. This competitive market is entirely about cars - both imported and domestic.

How far will a nation go for energy? Sweden is now allocating its resources in a more productive manner: bunnies are turned into heat. Due to the overpopulation of rabbits in the region, Konvex, an incinerator firm, uses rabbits to heat homes in Sweden. Since there are so many rabbits, representatives explain, this method is quite efficient in terms of energy production.

That's a reall interesting article. Who would think of burning rabbits to make green fuel? It is efficient but it might cause a problem with the animal rights groups.

The two big players of the online-retailer shops are Amazon and Wal-Mart. As the holiday season approaches, their price-discoutngin battles becomes intense every now and then. This ties into the topic of monopoly because these two firms dominates the online-retail industry.

Although this article does not mention any monopoly as such, the word 'merger' did capture my attention, since we studied the concept in the present chapter. In the article, the author is explaining the coming co-operation between two of the most important airlines in China; I have thus implied that these airlines are merging in order to become something close to a monopoly, since they do not want to risk competition uncertainties.

The EEF manufacture organization in UK announced that public finances are needed to restore the stability of the Uk's productive sector or else firms are going to drop out of the industry. This is relevant to the concept of effeciency because if these firms cannot either reach the allocative or productive effeciency, they will have to exit from the industry due to tremendous loss.

This article is about the need for Industrialization in African states. Industrialization would improve the productive efficiency in these countries by lowering the average costs of production. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon believes that increased industrialization in Africa will increase competition and allow integration into the global economy.

This article mentions one natural monopoly in Brazil, that one of eletric power. The electricity company Furnas is now facing serious problems in Brazil when trying to provide electric power, due to bad weather conditions, which have come so far as to cause a blackout in 18 states.

This article doesn't specifically mention a natural monopoly, but it refers to one because it is an industry with high sunk costs that is more efficient with less firms and central infrastructure.

Discount retailer Dollarama says solid sales driven by new, higher-priced products and the opening of 42 stores last year helped boost its profit in the latest quarter. Although the firm is a dollar-shop, its controversial price tagging of over $1 is bringing product - essntially a price discrimination to increase its profit.

This article talks about the car industry and how various care companies are trying themselves. Many are trying to be the "most environmentally friendly". Some keeping performance as their distinguishing factor. All of this shows forms of non-price discrimination in the marker

This article is about Google introducing a new smartphone. It is intended to compete with the Apple iPhone. This is non-price competition because it is centered around product differentiation rather than prices. Google's aim is to compete by offering a different product rather than lower prices.

The recent controversy over Tiger Wood's alleged infidelity has had devastating effect on his brand image, and in turn on his financial status. Although not directly discussing economics, this article is an example of how important non-price competition is. Branding and advertising is extremely important to Tiger Wood's - if we think of him as a company - because his image is what sets him apart from other sportsman. Now that image has been discredited, and the financial repercussions are enormous.

This article is an example of the effects of elements, such as unemployment and competition, on profit

This article explains what indirect taxes are and what they do.

This article explains the concept of PED and how that affects tax increases

This article statistically explains how price elasticity negatively affects Altria.

This article gives an example of a nation putting price control on a product and how that affects the consumtion of that and associated products in a nation.

This article explains the effects of price changes on the appeal of bonds with explanations as to why and how this happens.

This article relates to price discrimination with time as facor, since Wal-Mart is charging different prices at differents moments of the year, under the title of discounts.