75888 - Microeconomics

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, students will learn the fundamentals of microeconomic analysis. Specifically, they will be able to: • analyze the behavior and choices of consumers and firms, as well as the basic functioning of markets; • identify and evaluate various forms of competition among firms; • apply microeconomic principles to interpret the behavior of producers and consumers in the real world.

Course contents

Please note: This is an introductory course in microeconomics, which provides the basic analysis of the economic agents' behaviour and the end result of their interaction.

Course content

Part 1

1. An introduction to political economy: Methodological problems; using models; microeconomics and macroeconomics.

2. Theory of consumers' behaviour:

· preference representation and budget constraints; individual demand: demand functions; consumers' surplus;

· intertemporal choice and choice under uncertainty;

· introductory remarks on the economics of information: moral hazard and adverse selection.

3. Production and costs:

· theory of production.

· cost theory.

Part 2

4. The economics of markets:

· aggregation and market demand, elasticity and comparative statics;

· perfect competition and monopoly;

· product differentation and monopolistic competition; Chamberlin and Hotelling;

· oligopoly: non cooperative games and Nash equilibrium; the standard models of Cournot, Bertrand and Stackelberg; repeated games and collusion; games in extensive form and entry barriers;

· natural monopoly and contestability; introductory remaks on the economics of regulation.

. factor markets

5. Economic efficiency and welfare:

· general equilibrium in pure exchange; Pareto efficiency and the core; the fundamental theorems of welfare economics;

· externalities and the Coase theorem;

· public goods and public choices.

Readings/Bibliography

R.H. Frank e E. Cartwright, Microeconomia. McGraw-Hill Italia, Milano, ultima edizione.

Teaching methods

Traditional lectures.

Assessment methods

The exam consists of a written test where the candidate has to answer 3 open questions (essay type) out of a choice of 4 questions. Time allotted: 45 minutes.

Each answer scores a maximum of 10 points.

 If students answer all questions, then only the first 3 will be considered.

 

Grading is as following:

• <18 fail

• 18-23 sufficient

• 24-27 good

• 28-30 very good

• 30L excellent

Teaching tools

E-learning website.

Office hours

See the website of Rainer Andergassen