📚 Learning Guide
Resource Allocation for Profit Maximization
hard

In a perfectly competitive market, how would firms optimize resource allocation to achieve maximum profit when faced with varying elasticity of demand?

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Learning Path
Learning Path

Question & Answer
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Choose the Best Answer

A

By producing where marginal cost equals marginal revenue

B

By setting prices above average total cost

C

By ignoring demand elasticity in production decisions

D

By increasing production regardless of demand fluctuations

Understanding the Answer

Let's break down why this is correct

Answer

In a perfectly competitive market, firms aim to maximize their profits by efficiently using their resources based on the demand for their products. When demand is elastic, a small change in price leads to a large change in the quantity demanded, so firms should lower prices slightly to sell more and increase total revenue. Conversely, if demand is inelastic, lowering prices may not significantly increase sales, so firms might maintain or slightly increase prices to maximize profits. For example, if a bakery sees that customers buy much more bread when prices drop, it can produce more bread at a lower price to take advantage of that demand. By continually adjusting their production and pricing strategies based on how customers respond, firms can optimize their resource allocation and achieve maximum profit.

Detailed Explanation

Firms maximize profit by producing where the cost of making one more item equals the money they earn from selling it. Other options are incorrect because Setting prices above total costs can seem smart, but it can scare away customers; Ignoring how demand changes can lead to mistakes.

Key Concepts

market structure
resource optimization
elasticity of demand
Topic

Resource Allocation for Profit Maximization

Difficulty

hard level question

Cognitive Level

understand

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