📚 Learning Guide
Profit Maximization
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A manufacturing company produces a gadget with a fixed cost of $15,000. The variable cost per unit is $50, and each gadget sells for $100. If the company decides to increase production by 100 units, what will be the impact on their marginal cost, and what is the new breakeven point in units?

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Choose the Best Answer

A

The marginal cost remains the same, and the new breakeven point is 300 units.

B

The marginal cost increases, and the new breakeven point is 250 units.

C

The marginal cost decreases, and the new breakeven point is 200 units.

D

The marginal cost remains the same, and the new breakeven point is 400 units.

Understanding the Answer

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Answer

The marginal cost is the extra cost of making one more gadget, which is just the variable cost per unit, so it stays at $50 even if the company makes 100 more units. Because the marginal cost doesn’t change, the breakeven formula is unchanged: breakeven units = fixed cost ÷ (price – variable cost). Plugging in the numbers gives 15,000 ÷ (100 – 50) = 300 units. Thus, after adding 100 units, the marginal cost remains $50 and the breakeven point stays at 300 gadgets. For example, if the company now produces 400 gadgets, it still needs to sell 300 to cover all costs.

Detailed Explanation

The marginal cost is the extra cost of making one more unit. Other options are incorrect because People think producing more makes each unit cost more; Some assume more production reduces the marginal cost because of economies of scale.

Key Concepts

Marginal Cost Analysis
Cost-Volume-Profit (CVP) Relationship
Topic

Profit Maximization

Difficulty

medium level question

Cognitive Level

understand

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