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POLITICAL ECONOMY
Module ELEMENTS OF MICROECONOMICS

Academic Year 2024/2025 - Teacher: Antonio D'AGATA

Expected Learning Outcomes

The Economia Politica course (12 CFU) provides the student with the basic knowledge of Economics concerning consumption, production, and the working of markets and the aggregate economy.

The module "Elementi di Microeconomia" concerns individual consumption and production decisions, the working of markets, and the associated gains actors enjoy in market transactions. The student will have an understanding of the workings of competitive as well as noncompetitive markets and other sources of market failure. This knowledge will be useful in studying the second module "Elementi di Macroeconomia"

Course Structure

Lectures

Required Prerequisites

no prerequisite is required

Attendance of Lessons

Attendance is not required although strongly encouraged

Detailed Course Content

1) Preliminary Concepts: Ten Principles of Economics; Thinking Like an Economist; Graphing: A Brief Review; Interdependence and the Gains from Trade.

2) How Markets Work: The Market Forces of Supply and Demand; Supply, Demand, and Government Policies; Consumers, Producers, and the Efficiency of Markets; Application: International Trade.

3) The Economics of the Public Sector: Externalities, Public Goods and Common Resources.

4) Firm Behavior and the Organization of Industry: The Costs of Production, Firms in Competitive Markets, Monopoly, Monopolistic Competition, Oligopoly.

Textbook Information

Mankiw, N.G., Essentials of Economics, Cengage, 2021, Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 (except section. 6.2), 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.

Course Planning

 SubjectsText References
1Ten principles of EconomicsMankiw- Ch. 1
2Thinking Like and EconomistMankiw- Ch. 2
3Interdependence and the Gains from TradeMankiw- Ch. 3
4The Market Forces of Demand and SupplyMankiw- Ch. 4
5Demand, Supply, and Government PoliciesMankiw- Ch. 6
6Consumers, Producers, and the Efficiency of MarketsMankiw- Ch. 7
7Application: International TradeMankiw- Ch. 9
8ExternalitiesMankiw- Ch. 10
9Public Goods and Common ResourcesMankiw- Ch. 11
10The Costs of ProductionMankiw- Ch. 12
11Firms in Competitive MarketsMankiw- Ch. 13
12MonopolyMankiw- Ch. 14
13Monopolistic CompetitionMankiw- Ch. 15
14OligopolyMankiw- Ch. 16

Learning Assessment

Learning Assessment Procedures

Written exam (in Italian): four open questions.

Examples of frequently asked questions and / or exercises

Gli individui devono scegliere tra alternative: commentare. Il diagramma del flusso circolare. Il principio del vantaggio comparato. La curva di domanda. Gli effetti di un livello massimo dei prezzi. Il surplus del consumatore. Le argomentazioni a favore delle restrizioni al libero scambio. Esternalità e imposte pigouviane. I beni pubblici e il problema del free rider. Costi fissi e variabili, costi medi e marginali. La curva di costo marginale e le decisioni di offerta dell'impresa. Il costo del monopolio in termini di benessere. Concorrenza monopolistica: pubblicità e branding. L'equilibrio in regime di oligopolio.