DMSQF ECO2101 Microeconomics
CA1 Individual Project - Instructions for Students
January 2025 Semester
CA1 Individual Project Assessment
This CA1 constitutes 30% of the overall ECO2101 Microeconomics course assessment.
Rationale of Individual Project
This individual project allows you to pursue authentic learning and to apply theories taught in class to real world situations. This encourages independence and self-confidence as well as developing one’s thinking and analytical skills when working through real world situations.
Choosing Product Market for Analysis
This project involves choosing product(s) for your project analysis, using microeconomics concepts discussed in Lectures 1 to 5.
The product or service market can be either general or specific, local or international.
Some examples of product or service market:
• Smartphones (general)
• Apple iphone (specific brand in the smartphone market)
• Starbuck Coffee in China (local, specific to a country)
• Coffee (international)
Choosing Articles as References for Analysis
Search through newspapers sources (other sources are strictly not permitted), either in print or online for THREE (3) articles based on the product market you have chosen. Articles should contain real world situations and should be in English. Articles that contain analysis or researched by others should not be used. The articles must be related to the concepts discussed in Lectures 1 to 5.
Articles must be dated from 1st November 2024 onwards.
The articles are to be based on the following topics.
Article 1 – Lecture Topic 1 on Production Possibilities Frontier Article 2 – Lecture Topic 3 on Market Equilibrium
Article 3 – Lecture Topic 4 on Elasticity OR Lecture Topic 5 on Utility
Select THREE (3) articles on the SAME PRODUCT (for example, all 3 articles on coffee) or DIFFERENT PRODUCTS (for example, 1st article on coffee, 2nd article on apparel and 3rd article on smartphone).
Analysing your Product Market
For each article, identify the event(s) or phenomena. Summarise these events in your own words.
Analyse these events using the appropriate microeconomic concepts. Reproducing or paraphrasing the article does NOT constitute an analysis.
Economic diagram(s), where applicable must be drawn to support your analysis. Diagrams must be fully labelled and should not be hand-drawn.
The following analysis must be included.
Article 1 - Lecture Topic 1: PPF and Opportunity Cost
Shift in PPF (to include diagram to show the shift in PPF)
Explain the shape of the PPF (whether bowed shape or straight line PPF)
Analyse the opportunity cost when more of one product is produced
Article 2 - Lecture Topic 3: Market Equilibrium and Efficiency
Change in demand or supply or both (this is term as event) (to include diagram to show the changes in the event and the equilibrium quantity and price)
Analyse whether market is efficient before and after change in event
Analyse whether consumer surplus, producer surplus and total surplus increase or
decrease after change in event (to include diagram to show the changes in consumer surplus and producer surplus)
Analyse whether total surplus is maximised before and after change in event
Article 3 - Lecture Topic 4: Elasticity
Analyse the type of elasticity
Explain the type of elasticity using the factors that affect the type of elasticity
Analyse the changes in total revenue (to include diagram to show the changes in total revenue)
OR
- Lecture Topic 5: Utility
Analyse the changes in the budget line (to include diagram to show the changes in the budget line)
Analyse the changes in the consumer equilibrium using equalisation of MU per dollar (to include the MU per dollar diagram to show the changes in consumer equilibrium)
The following are some suggestions for the analysis:
Using PPF concept to analyse a reduction in the production of crops due to natural disasters like earthquakes or flood (topic 1)
Using market equilibrium analysis to analyse the changes in the price of semiconductor chips due to the high demand and reduced supply of semiconductor chips (topic 3)
Using price elasticity of demand to analyse the elasticity of oil as price of oil rises due essential needs and no close substitutability (topic 4)
Using utility and demand to analyse on household consumption choices (topic 5)
Writing your Report
Use Calibri Font Size 12pt. Number your pages. Use single line spacing. Do a full justification (that is both left and right justified) of your report.
The report should be between 1,000 to 1,500 words. Each Analysis should have at least 180 words.
Use the template in Appendix 1 for your report format.
• Limit each analysis to one page.
• Begin each analysis on a new page. For example, analysis 2.1 on a new page, analysis 2.2 on a new page, and soon.
• Ensure consistency throughout the report. For example, consistent formatting (such as same font type and font size, same line spacing) throughout the whole report; diagrams are all drawn using the same software such as Powerpoint and not some diagrams are drawn using PowerPoint and some using Word or Excel software. Diagrams should not hand drawn.
Report Grading
This is a short report. The key to a good report is to be clear and concise. Report will be graded on the various report components, namely proper Cover Page, Introduction, Article Summary, Analysis, Diagrams, Conclusion, References as well as Report Consistency.
• Marking Scheme
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Items
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Marking Scheme
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Introduction
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8 marks
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Article Summary
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18 marks
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Analysis
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39 marks
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Economic Diagram
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18 marks
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Conclusion
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8 marks
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References
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3 marks
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Report Consistency
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6 marks
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Total 100 marks
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• Penalty will be imposed for
o 20% for late submission of report (within one (1) day after the submission dateline)
o Up to 20% for use of non-newspaper sources
o Up to 20% for not adhering to dates of articles
o Plagiarism, which includes copying from student’s own report submitted previously to SIMGE or other educational institutions, other student reports, any other sources and copying of economics diagrams from google or other sources. Any use of chatbot or any system powered by artificial intelligence, software or otherwise is considered as plagiarism.
Submission of Report
Submit the Word format of your report online via Canvas by 22nd January 2025 11:59am. Reports submitted through other ways (e.g., through email or hardcopy to the lecturer or the school) will not be accepted.
1. Introduction x
2. Analysis
(The Analysis sub-titles below are for illustration purposes)
(The illustration below is where all the 3 articles are from the SAME product. You could also have the 3 articles from DIFFERENT products.)
2.1 Analysis 1 – Climate change impact on wheat production x
(Topic 1: PPF and Opportunity Cost)
2.2 Analysis 2 – Changes in demand and supply of wheat (Topic 3: Market Equilibrium)
2.3 Analysis 3 – Inelastic demand for wheat x
(Topic 4: Elasticity)
OR
Analysis 3 – Increased consumption of wheat due to higher utility (Topic 5: Utility and Demand)
1 Introduction
(One paragraph to explain or discuss why you have selected the product(s) for your report.)
(One paragraph to summarise the events and analysis of all the three articles.)
2 Analysis
2.1 Analysis 1 - Climate change impact on wheat production (Topic 1: PPF and Opportunity Cost)
Source : Quote the source of the article or if the article is obtained from the web, quote the web address
Summary
(One to two short paragraphs summarising the key event(s) in the article)
Analysis
(Two to three short paragraphs on analysing the key event(s) using microeconomic concepts)
(Economic diagram(s) to support the analysis)
2.2 Analysis 2 - Changes in demand and supply of wheat (Topic 3: Market Equilibrium)
Source : Quote the source of the article or if the article is obtained from the web, quote the web address
Summary
(One to two short paragraphs summarising the key event(s) in the article)
Analysis
(Two to three short paragraphs on analysing the key event(s) using microeconomic concepts)
(Economic diagram(s) to support the analysis)
2.3 Analysis 3 - Inelastic demand for wheat (Topic 4: Elasticity)
OR
Analysis 3 - Increased consumption of wheat due to higher utility (Topic 5: Utility and Demand)
Source : Quote the source of the article or if the article is obtained from the web, quote the web address
Summary
(One to two short paragraphs summarising the key event(s) in the article)
Analysis
(Two to three short paragraphs on analysing the key event(s) using microeconomic concepts)
(Economic diagram(s) to support the analysis)
3 Conclusion
One paragraph on the overall view of the key analysis.
(The objective is to present an overall view or coherent view of the key analysis. It is NOT to be written in a ‘listing’ style where all the key analysis is listed one by one for each topic).