BOOK
Essential Economics for Business (formerly Economics and the Business Environment)
(2017)
Additional Information
Book Details
Abstract
This new edition of Essential Economics for Business presents the core principles of microeconomics and macroeconomics applied to the world of business while also looking at wider, topical business issues, such as business strategy, corporate social responsibility, ethics and the state of the global environment in which we live.
Using up-to-date case studies the 5th edition examines everything from the impact of the financial crisis, to the effects of the Brexit vote in the UK, to popular distrust of globalisation, to the operation of specific businesses to illustrate how economic theory relates to real business issues.
Looking for economics in action? Search online for the Sloman Economics News Site, a blog thats updated several times a week with current affairs and topical stories, all linked to your textbook so you can explore the background to the issues more deeply.
Authors bio
John Sloman was Director of the Economics Network from its foundation in 1999 until 2012, and is now Visiting Fellow at the University of Bristol where the Network is based. John is also Visiting Professor at the University of the West of England, Bristol.
Elizabeth Jones is a Principal Teaching Fellow and the Dean of Students in the Economics Department at the University of Warwick. Elizabeth is also a Lecturer on economics courses for non-economists delivered to departments across the UK government.
Table of Contents
| Section Title | Page | Action | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cover | Cover | ||
| Title Page | iii | ||
| Copyright Page | iv | ||
| Brief Contents | v | ||
| Contents | vii | ||
| Preface | ix | ||
| Acknowledgements | xii | ||
| Aublisher’s Acknowledgements | xiii | ||
| Part A Introduction | 1 | ||
| 1 Business and the economic environment | 2 | ||
| 1.1 The business organisation | 6 | ||
| 1.2 The external business environment | 10 | ||
| 1.3 The economist’s approach to business | 18 | ||
| Box 1.1 A perfect partnership 3 | 3 | ||
| Box 1.2 The biotechnology industry | 13 | ||
| Box 1.3 The changing nature of business | 18 | ||
| Questions | 21 | ||
| Part end – additional case studies and relevant websites | 22 | ||
| Part B Markets, demand and supply | 24 | ||
| 2 The working of competitive markets | 24 | ||
| 2.1 Business in a perfectly competitive market | 24 | ||
| 2.2 Demand | 26 | ||
| 2.3 Supply | 30 | ||
| 2.4 Price and output determination | 32 | ||
| 2.5 Elasticity of demand and supply | 37 | ||
| Box 2.1 Stock market prices | 34 | ||
| Box 2.2 UK house prices | 38 | ||
| Box 2.3 Shall we put up our price? | 43 | ||
| Box 2.4 Speculation | 46 | ||
| Box 2.5 Market intervention | 48 | ||
| Questions | 50 | ||
| 3 Demand and the consumer | 51 | ||
| 3.1 Demand and the firm | 51 | ||
| 3.2 Understanding consumer behaviour | 52 | ||
| 3.3 Behavioural economics | 59 | ||
| 3.4 Estimating and predicting demand | 62 | ||
| 3.5 Stimulating demand | 65 | ||
| Box 3.1 Rogue traders | 55 | ||
| Box 3.2 Problems for unwary insurance companies | 58 | ||
| Box 3.3 Nudging people | 61 | ||
| Box 3.4 Brands and own-brands | 68 | ||
| Box 3.5 Advertising and the long run | 71 | ||
| Questions | 73 | ||
| 4 Supply decisions in a perfectly competitive market | 74 | ||
| 4.1 Production in the short Run | 75 | ||
| 4.2 Production and Costs: long Run | 82 | ||
| 4.3 Revenue | 90 | ||
| 4.4 Profit maximisation | 92 | ||
| Box 4.1 Diminishing returns and business | 76 | ||
| Box 4.2 Understanding your fixed costs | 80 | ||
| Box 4.3 Industrial clusters and competitiveness | 86 | ||
| Box 4.4 Minimum efficient scale | 88 | ||
| Box 4.5 C ost, revenue and profits | 91 | ||
| Box 4.6 E-commerce | 96 | ||
| Questions | 98 | ||
| Part end – additional case studies and relevant websites | 99 | ||
| Part C The microeconomic environment of business | 102 | ||
| 5 Pricing and output decisions in imperfectly competitive markets | 102 | ||
| 5.1 Alternative market structures | 102 | ||
| 5.2 Monopoly | 106 | ||
| 5.3 Oligopoly | 111 | ||
| 5.4 Game theory | 117 | ||
| 5.5 Alternative aims of the firm | 122 | ||
| 5.6 Setting price | 126 | ||
| Box 5.1 C oncentration ratios | 105 | ||
| Box 5.2 Windows cleaning | 109 | ||
| Box 5.3 O ligopolies: the good, the bad and the ugly | 115 | ||
| Box 5.4 The prisoners’ dilemma | 119 | ||
| Box 5.5 Stakeholder power? | 125 | ||
| Box 5.6 Pricing in practice | 130 | ||
| Questions | 132 | ||
| 6 Business growth and strategy | 133 | ||
| 6.1 Strategic analysis | 133 | ||
| 6.2 Strategic choice | 137 | ||
| 6.3 Growth strategy | 143 | ||
| 6.4 Financing growth and investment | 152 | ||
| 6.5 Starting small | 154 | ||
| Box 6.1 Business strategy the Samsung way | 138 | ||
| Box 6.2 The ratios to measure success | 141 | ||
| Box 6.3 R ecessionary strategies | 148 | ||
| Box 6.4 The Dyson Dual Cyclone vacuum cleaner | 157 | ||
| Questions | 159 | ||
| 7 Multinational corporations and business strategy in a global economy | 160 | ||
| 7.1 Multinational corporations | 161 | ||
| 7.2 Business strategy in a global economy | 166 | ||
| 7.3 Problems facing multinationals | 174 | ||
| 7.4 Multinationals and the host state | 175 | ||
| Box 7.1 Merger activity | 165 | ||
| Box 7.2 Attracting foreign investors | 170 | ||
| Box 7.3 Grocers go global | 173 | ||
| Box 7.4 Investing in China | 176 | ||
| Questions | 179 | ||
| 8 Labour and employment | 180 | ||
| 8.1 Market-determined wage rates and employment | 180 | ||
| 8.2 Power in the labour market | 186 | ||
| 8.3 Minimum wages | 190 | ||
| 8.4 The flexible firm and the market for labour | 192 | ||
| 8.5 The labour market and incentives | 196 | ||
| Box 8.1 ‘Telecommuters’ | 182 | ||
| Box 8.2 The winter of discontent | 188 | ||
| Box 8.3 Does gender inequality still exist? | 194 | ||
| Box 8.4 Education, earnings, productivity and talent | 199 | ||
| Questions | 202 | ||
| 9 Government, the firm and the market | 203 | ||
| 9.1 Market failures | 204 | ||
| 9.2 Business ethics and corporate social responsibility | 209 | ||
| 9.3 Government intervention in the market | 212 | ||
| 9.4 Environmental policy | 213 | ||
| 9.5 C ompetition policy and business behaviour | 220 | ||
| 9.6 The regulation of business | 224 | ||
| Box 9.1 The problem of free-riders | 207 | ||
| Box 9.2 The Body Shop | 211 | ||
| Box 9.3 A stern warning | 214 | ||
| Box 9.4 The problem of urban traffic congestion | 218 | ||
| Box 9.5 From paper envelopes to canned mushrooms: the umpire strikes back | 223 | ||
| Questions | 226 | ||
| Part end – additional case studies and relevant websites | 227 | ||
| Part D The macroeconomic environment of business | 230 | ||
| 10 The economy and business activity | 230 | ||
| 10.1 The key macroeconomic objectives | 230 | ||
| 10.2 Business activity and the circular flow of income | 232 | ||
| 10.3 The determination of business activity | 235 | ||
| 10.4 The business cycle | 240 | ||
| 10.5 Money, interest rates and business activity | 245 | ||
| 10.6 Unemployment | 249 | ||
| 10.7 Inflation | 253 | ||
| Box 10.1 Doing the sums | 237 | ||
| Box 10.2 The economics of playing host | 238 | ||
| Box 10.3 Business expectations and their effect on investment | 243 | ||
| Box 10.4 Inflation and unemployment: how costly? | 254 | ||
| Box 10.5 Inflation or deflation | 258 | ||
| Questions | 259 | ||
| 11 National macroeconomic policy | 260 | ||
| 11.1 Fiscal policy | 261 | ||
| 11.2 Monetary policy | 269 | ||
| 11.3 Supply-side policy | 279 | ||
| Box 11.1 The fiscal framework in the eurozone | 268 | ||
| Box 11.2 The central banks of the USA and the eurozone | 274 | ||
| Box 11.3 The credit crunch | 276 | ||
| Box 11.4 Japan’s volatile past and present | 280 | ||
| Box 11.5 Productivity | 284 | ||
| Box 11.6 R esearch and development | 286 | ||
| Questions | 288 | ||
| 12 The global trading environment | 289 | ||
| 12.1 International trade | 290 | ||
| 12.2 Trade restrictions | 296 | ||
| 12.3 The world trading system and the WTO_ | 300 | ||
| 12.4 The european union and the single market | 305 | ||
| Box 12.1 The changing face of comparative advantage | 294 | ||
| Box 12.2 Strategic trade theory | 298 | ||
| Box 12.3 Beyond Bananas | 302 | ||
| Box 12.4 Preferential trading | 304 | ||
| Box 12.5 The EU referendum debate and the aftermath of the brexit vote | 308 | ||
| Questions | 311 | ||
| 13 The global financial environment | 312 | ||
| 13.1 The balance of payments | 313 | ||
| 13.2 The exchange rate | 315 | ||
| 13.3 The growth of global financial flows | 324 | ||
| 13.4 Economic and monetary union in the EU | 327 | ||
| 13.5 International economic policy: managing the global economy | 330 | ||
| Postscript: is globalisation a ‘good thing’? | 333 | ||
| Box 13.1 The importance of international financial movements | 318 | ||
| Box 13.2 Exchange rate fluctuations and the plight of SMEs | 320 | ||
| Box 13.3 The euro/dollar seesaw | 322 | ||
| Box 13.4 A worldwide epidemic | 331 | ||
| Questions | 335 | ||
| Part end – additional case studies and relevant websites | 336 | ||
| Web appendix | W-1 | ||
| Key ideas | K-1 | ||
| Glossary | G-1 | ||
| A | G-1 | ||
| B | G-1 | ||
| C | G-1 | ||
| D | G-2 | ||
| E | G-3 | ||
| F | G-3 | ||
| G | G-4 | ||
| H | G-4 | ||
| I | G-4 | ||
| J | G-5 | ||
| K | G-5 | ||
| L | G-5 | ||
| M | G-5 | ||
| N | G-6 | ||
| O | G-6 | ||
| P | G-7 | ||
| Q | G-7 | ||
| R | G-7 | ||
| S | G-8 | ||
| T | G-9 | ||
| U | G-10 | ||
| V | G-10 | ||
| W | G-10 | ||
| Index | I-1 | ||
| A | I-1 | ||
| B | I-1 | ||
| C | I-1 | ||
| D | I-2 | ||
| E | I-2 | ||
| F | I-3 | ||
| G | I-4 | ||
| H | I-4 | ||
| I | I-5 | ||
| J | I-5 | ||
| K | I-5 | ||
| L | I-6 | ||
| M | I-6 | ||
| N | I-7 | ||
| O | I-7 | ||
| P | I-7 | ||
| Q | I-8 | ||
| R | I-8 | ||
| S | I-9 | ||
| T | I-9 | ||
| U | I-10 | ||
| V | I-10 | ||
| W | I-11 | ||
| Z | I-11 |