Economics

Starting from the European Monetary System in 1979, Europe embarked on a process that led to the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 and the creation of a common European currency, the euro. A common currency among different countries is something relatively new that has been attempted only a few times in history before (e.g., the West African CFA franc, the Central African CFA franc, and the Eastern Caribbean dollar). What are the advantages brought about by the euro to the countries that belong to the Eurozone? What are the challenges? Do you think this currency union is sustainable and will European Monetary Systembe successful going forward? Why? Why not? For more information on read this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Monetary_System

You are a manager at a local accounting firm, and Kate and Sam Smith are your clients.  It is the end of the year, and they have come to ask your advice on some tax planning strategies, as well as help preparing their tax return. Write a 4-page letter to Kate and Sam Smith which: Walks them through their current year tax return. The detail which expenses they incurred that were nondeductible for tax purposes and explain why. The Smiths have always itemized deductions instead of taking the standard deduction on their tax return.  Explain how this may no longer be the best tax strategy due to changes in tax law under the TCJA. Regarding the investment opportunities, you calculated in week 1, explain: Which investment opportunity you would recommend. What the conversion tax planning strategy is, and which of these investments employ this strategy.How “implicit taxes” may limit the benefits of the conversion strategy. Kate and Sam are considering purchasing a vacation home. They plan on spending several months each year vacationing in the home and renting out the property the rest of the year.  Provide an overview of the key tax considerations they should take into account when making this decision.For more information on Tax Planning  read this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_avoidance

Discussion The discussion assignment provides a forum for discussing relevant topics for this week based on the course competencies covered. For this assignment, choose one of the following questions and post your initial response to the Discussion Area by the due date assigned. To support your work, use your course and text readings and also use outside sources. As in all assignments, cite your sources in your work and provide references for the citations in APA format. Start reviewing and responding to the postings of your classmates as early in the week as possible. Respond to at least two of your classmates. Participate in the discussion by asking a question, providing a statement of clarification, providing a point of view with a rationale, challenging an aspect of the discussion, or indicating a relationship between two or more lines of reasoning in the discussion. Complete your participation in this assignment by the end of the week. Question One: Bivariate Regression Regression analysis is a powerful and commonly used tool in business research. One important step in regression is to determine the dependent and independent variable(s). In a bivariate regression, which variable is the dependent variable and which one is the independent variable? What does the intercept of a regression tell? What does the slope of a regression tell? What are some of the main uses of a regression? Provide an example of a situation wherein a bivariate regression would be a good choice for analyzing data. Question Two: Types of Regression Analyses There are two major types of regression analysis—simple and multiple regression analysis. Both types consist of dependent and independent variables. Simple linear regression has two variables—dependent and independent. Multiple regression consists of a dependent variable and two or more independent variables. How does a multiple regression compare with a simple linear regression? What are the various ways to determine what variables should be included in a multiple regression equation? Compare and contrast the following processes: forward selection, backward elimination, and stepwise selection. Justify your answers using examples and reasoning. Comment on the postings of at least two peers and state whether you agree or disagree with their views. For more information on read this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bivariate_analysis

CASE STUDY: AUCTIONS AND DYNAMIC PRICING There are many types of auctions, each with strengths and weaknesses at uncovering the real price or value of an item. Auctions are widely used in finance, e-commerce, and e-games. They are also widely used to generate revenue for not-for-profit organizations. The following video describes auctions as price discovery mechanisms: The Ideal Auction. Use the video on auctions and at least three academic or high-quality business publications (see acceptable types below) to compare and contrast English auctions and Dutch auctions, and sealed-bid first-price auctions and Vickery auctions. INSTRUCTIONS Address the following questions in 5–7 pages: Compare and contrast how each of the following uncovers value: English and Dutch auctions. Sealed-bid first-price auctions and Vickery auctions. Compare and contrast surge pricing and congestion pricing. Give an example of each currently in use. Identify three examples of auctions used in finance, e-commerce, and/or e-games. Explain the following in-depth: The need for an auction to uncover value in the product or service. How the type of auction used to uncover the value of the product or service is better at uncovering value than other types of auctions. What are the advantages or disadvantages of auctions as revenue generators for not-for-profit organizations? Suggest ways in which a for-profit company, such as the company for which you work or a company for which you aspire to work, can use auctions or dynamic pricing to better uncover value and increase revenue. This course requires the use of Strayer Writing Standards. For assistance and information, please refer to the Strayer Writing Standards link in the left-hand menu of your course. Check with your professor for any additional instructions. ACCEPTABLE TYPES OF PUBLICATIONS high-quality, the professional business publication is one that is primarily directed at reporting or analyzing the workings of the business. Examples are the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and Reuters. Avoid general news publications such as USA Today, the Washington Post, and the New York Times. Other articles and resources can be found at the Strayer Library. Please do not rely on Wikipedia, Investopedia, or similar websites as references at any time in this course. The specific course learning outcome associated with this assignment is: Propose ways in which a company can use auctions to better uncover value and increase revenue For more information on Auctions and Dynamic Pricing read this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_pricing

Financial panics can be a threat to the entire banking system. If one financial institution falls, it can have a domino effect, which generated huge pressures on key financial firms and disrupted many important financial markets.  In a financial panic, the central bank can act as the “lender of last resort”: Central banks provide liquidity (offering short-term loans) to financial institutions that are experiencing financial difficulty or near collapse to help calm financial panics. In the United States, the Federal Reserve acts as the lender of last resort to institutions that do not have any other means of borrowing, and whose failure to obtain credit would dramatically affect the economy. For example, during the 2008 financial crisis, the Federal Reserve, along with U.S. Treasury and FDIC, stepped in to “bailout” insolvent U.S. financial institutions to minimize systemic risk. Discussion Topics: What can cause a financial panic What would be the benefits and costs of using the Federal Reserve as a “lender of last resort”?Share your thoughts. Watch the Video: Financial Panic in the Great Depression (1929-1939)Watch the Video: The Federal Reserve as Lender of Last Resort https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_FrlBu9KJw&feature=emb_logo100 word minimum For more information on Financial Panic read this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Financial_crisis

1) Environmental Sustainability Theoretical Review. Environmental sustainability theory linked to organisational environmental sustainability practices. Contemporary examples provided to illustrate points.Degree of critical evaluation.Number and quality of references used.   2) Evaluation of organisation’s Environmental Sustainability practices. Consideration of the strategic relevance to the organisation and potential impact on the organisation’s brand and competitive situation. Audit and critical evaluation of current practices using course concepts identified in the theoretical review.  3) Conclusions/Recommendations (Environmental Sustainability).The strategic relevance of environmental sustainability to the organisation.The organisation’s environmental sustainability practices.

1. Explain the effects of low price-guarantee on the price.  2. If a group of sellers could form a cartel, what quantity and price would they try to set? 3. What do you understand by discriminatory monopoly? Bring out the conditions that enable the monopoly firm to charge different prices for its product in different markets. For more information on Low Price-Guarantee read this:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Price-based_selling

Write a short essay (1500 words) answering/covering the following questions: The movie points out that supermarkets are not ruled by a “free-market economy” but by a “monopsony”. What does “monopsony” mean? How is monopsony affecting farmers?” Farmworkers are generally paid by the piece rather than strictly by the hour” Foodchains film.com Tomato pickers in Immokalee are required to pick a minimum of 480 pounds of fruit per hour to make around $42 for a nine-hour shift; for how much money would you be willing to do this work? What else might you demand? If you would require a large amount of money to do this work, how would the company meet your demand? How would they cover the additional cost? If you say that no amount of money would be enough, what alternatives would the company have, since people like you will not do the work? In the film, Father Brinkley says that in the Napa Valley there is an ” Economic Apartheid.” What does he mean by that expression? According to the film, raising $4 million in charity in the Napa Valley does absolutely nothing to enable farmers to live a life closer in material terms to the one that donors live. Who do you think is benefiting from the Napa Valley vintners auction?How is the history of the agriculture industry in the U.S. connected to immigration? Film: “Food Chains”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vw-qTCW8fo

3  Economic Discussions, Need 250 words Initial Post and two replies., I will attach the replies later.   Week 6 Discussion Context In your Managerial Economics textbook, we consider a sequential-move game in which an entrant is considering entering an industry in competition with an incumbent firm (see Figure 15-1). There are several possibilities of how this sequential game will be played. We want to use the Froeb rule of “look ahead and reason back.” Instructions For your discussion post, use Figure 15-1 from the textbook as your starting point to address the following: Can, and how does, the entrant succeed? Is the incumbent ever in control of this game? You may wish to review the old game known as Duopoly, as well as Antoine-Augustin Cournot, to help inform your post. Note: In your discussion posts for this course, do not rely on Wikipedia, Investopedia, or any similar website as a reference or supporting source. To earn full credit for your discussion, you must complete one post and one follow-up or reply to a classmate. Make sure both the post and the reply focus on the questions asked.  Week 7 Discussion Context This week’s discussion focuses on decision error costs with regard to hiring new talent. Use the provided scenario as a basis to inform your post on decision-making impacts and Type I and Type II errors. Instructions The HR department is trying to fill a vacant position for a job with a small talent pool. Valid applications arrive every week or so, and the applicants all seem to bring different levels of expertise. For each applicant, the HR manager gathers information by trying to verify various claims on résumés, but some doubt about fit always lingers when a decision to hire or not to hire is made. For your discussion post, address the following within the context of the scenario: What are the Type I and Type II decision errors costs? Which decision error is more likely to be discovered by the CEO? How does this affect the HR manager’s hiring decisions? Note: In your discussion posts for this course, do not rely on Wikipedia, Investopedia, or any similar website as a reference or supporting source. To earn full credit for your discussion, you must complete one post and one follow-up or reply to a classmate. Make sure both the post and the reply focus on the questions asked.  Week 8 Discussion Context For this discussion, your focus will be to think through what asymmetric information, moral hazard, and adverse selection have to do with hiring a police officer. Instructions Consider the following statement: Many police officer positions require the applicant to have a college degree even though the tasks of a police officer rarely call upon college course material. In your discussion post, address the following: Speculate on why police departments do not increase their applicant pool by dropping this requirement and how asymmetric information, moral hazard, and adverse selection are involved?  Note: In your discussion posts for this course, do not rely on Wikipedia, Investopedia, or any similar website as a reference or supporting source. To earn full credit for your discussion, you must complete one post and one follow-up or reply to a classmate. Make sure both the post and the reply focus on the questions asked

This week’s reading centered around Bitcoin Economics.  For this week’s research paper, search the Internet and explain why some organizations are accepting and other organizations are rejecting the use of Bitcoins as a standard form of currency.  Your paper needs to identify two major companies that have adopted Bitcoin technology as well as one that has refused to accept Bitcoin as a form of currency. Be sure to discuss each organization, how they adopted (or why they won’t adopt) Bitcoin, and what recommendations you have for them to continue to support Bitcoin (or why they should support Bitcoin). Your paper should meet the following requirements: Be approximately five pages in length, not including the required cover page and reference page. Follow APA7 guidelines. Your paper should include an introduction, a body with fully developed content, and a conclusion. Support your answers with the readings from the course and at least two scholarly journal articles to support your positions, claims, and observations, in addition to your textbook. Be clearly and well-written, concise, and logical, using excellent grammar and style techniques. You are being graded in part on the quality of your writing For more information read this:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bitcoin