FACULTY OF HUMANITIES

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

ECONOMICS
COURSE UNIT OUTLINE 2011/12
ECON 10081: The UK Economy Microeconomics
Semester: One

Credits: 10

Lecturer(s):
Room:
Telephone:
Email:

David Young
Arthur Lewis (3.062)
0161 275 54848
david.young@manchester.ac.uk

Noel Russell
Arthur Lewis (3.078)
0161 275 4797
noel.russell@manchester.ac.uk

Office Hours:

Book via SOHOL at

http://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/intranet/ug/sohol/

Tutors:

TBA. Please see intranet timetable for details at

http://www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/intranet/ug/timetables/

Administrator:

Leo Wells, Room G.001 Arthur Lewis Building

Lectures:

Monday 1-2pm (University Place Th.B)

Thursday 2-3pm (University Place Th.B)

Tutorials:

Please check your lecture and tutorial schedule

***IMPORTANT INFORMATION PLEASE READ***

Pre-requisite(s):
First Year Students: A-Level Economics or equivalent
Second Year Students: ECON10041 or A-Level Economics or equivalent
Resits: Please note that if you fail to pass this course as a whole, you will be required to resit all
examined components of the course in the August resit examination period. The resit is available
for First and Second Year Students.
Communication: Students must read their University e-mails regularly, as important information
will be communicated in this way.
Mode of assessment:
Summative Assessment
(Formal assessment):

Formative Assessment
(It does not count towards
final grade):

Assessment will be via a multiple choice examination of 40 questions

to be answered in 1.5 hour (90 minutes). This will carry 90 per cent of
the overall mark. In addition, 10 per cent of the overall mark will be
awarded for tutorial attendance.
Please see Section 5 of this document for important information
about assessment.
Preparation for 5 tutorials including completing 6 Multiple Choice
Quizzes and one 1000-word non-assessed essay. See Plan of
Semester at 3 below for essay deadlines.

Reading week:
Week commencing 31 October 2011
Examination period:
16.01.12 27.01.12
Re-sit Examination period:
20.08.12 31.08.12

2.

Aims and objectives

Aims: To develop a knowledge of a) firms and industries within the UK economy, b) UK

microeconomic policy and c) a theoretical understanding of firm and industry behaviour and an
appreciation of the interaction between theory and practice.
Objectives: a) demonstrate knowledge of the recent behaviour of UK firms and industries;
b) demonstrate an understanding of key theoretical explanations of firm and industry behaviour;
c) relate theory to recent UK experience; d) demonstrate knowledge of UK microeconomic
policies e) critically evaluate recent UK policy.

3.
Week
beg.
26/09/11
03/10/11
10/10/11
17/10/11
24/10/11
31/10/11
07/11/11
14/11/11

Plan of semester
Lectures

Tutorials

Firms Objectives and Behaviour

Market Structure and Oligopoly
Pricing in Theory and Practice
T.B.A.
Mergers, Acquisitions and Competition Policy

DY
DY
DY
DY
NR

Prepare for Tutorial I

Tutorial
Tutorial
Tutorial
Tutorial

I Groups A:
I Groups B:
II Groups A:
II Groups B:

Reading week
Economics of the Environment
Distribution of Income, Wealth and Poverty

T.B.A.
21/11/11
Examination Revision Lecture
28/11/11
05/12/11
12/12/11
19/12/11 - 13/01/12
16/01/12 - 27/01/12

4.

Deadlines

NR
NR

Tutorial III Groups A:

Tutorial III Groups B:

NR
NR

Tutorial
Tutorial
Tutorial
Tutorial

IV Groups A:
IV Groups B:
V Groups A:
V Groups B:

Prepare for Tutorial II

Start Drafting Essay
Prepare for Tutorial III
A-groups hand in essay by Wed
Prepare for Tutorial IV
B-groups hand in essay by Wed
Prepare for Tutorial V

Christmas Break
Examination Period

Reading List, Course Outline, Tutorial Questions and work required for Tutorials
a. Reading list:

Bespoke Textbook: This year we have made arrangements with Pearson Education to publish a
specially designed text book that covers the recommended reading material for the two course modules
ECON10081 The UK Economy Microeconomics and ECON10082 The UK Economy Macroeconomics.
This text contains the recommended chapters from the two main texts for these modules in a single volume
and is available from Blackwells at approximately the price of one of these texts. The title of the book is The
UK Economy Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. We strongly urge you to consider purchasing this
book as it has been specially designed for these two course modules while helping you to save money.
Alternatively the individual textbooks are: Griffiths, A. and Wall, S. (2007), Applied Economics: An
Introductory Text (11th edition), Prentice Hall (referred to as G&W below) and Sloman, J. (2002/06)
th th
Economics, 5 /6 edition, Prentice Hall (referred to as Sloman below). Additional relevant material may be
found in Sawyer, M. (ed.) (2005) The UK Economy: A Manual of Applied Economics, 16th edition, Oxford
University Press. A number of further, more specific readings may be provided as the course unfolds.

b. Course Outline and topic-specific readings:

Topic 1 Firms Objectives and Behaviour (G&W C3, Sloman C8)
Optimisation (inc. alternative maximands)
Behavioural Theories
Implications of Alternative Objectives
Topic 2 Market Structure and Oligopoly (G&W C6, Sloman C6 and C7)
Standard Theory of the Firm and Market Structure
Concentration
Collusion
Strategic behaviour: Oligopoly in Theory and in Practice
Topic 3 Pricing in Theory and Practice (G&W C9, Sloman C8)
Standard Price Theory
Mark-up Theory of Pricing
Pricing in Practice
Topic 4 Mergers, Acquisitions and Competition Policy (G&W C5, Sloman C13)
Trends in Merger Activity
Different Types of Mergers
Recent Changes in Competition Policy
Topic 5 Economics of the Environment (G&W C10, Sloman C11 and C12)
Sustainability and Cost-Benefit Analysis
Market and Non-market Incentives

Analysis of Local and Global Pollution Problems

Topic 6 The Distribution of Income, Wealth and Poverty (G&W C14, Sloman C9 and C10)
Income Distribution
The Distribution of Wealth
Poverty

c.

Tutorial Questions

You are expected to prepare for tutorials by attending lectures, reading the course texts and any other
appropriate materials, by thinking about the subject matter, and by completing the relevant quizzes on
Blackboard.
Tutorial I: Firms Objectives
What are firms main objectives?
Compare price and output for a profit maximising firm with those of an output maximiser.
Can we reduce firms behaviour to a simple single objective function?
Tutorial II: Market Structure and Pricing
Compare prices and outputs under perfect competition and monopoly.
How can we measure changes in market structure?
Assess the importance of collusion in oligopolistic industries in the UK
Explain what is meant by limit pricing.
Tutorial III: Mergers and Competition Policy
Why do firms merge?
What are the implications of changes in merger activity?
What have been the main changes in merger activity in the U.K. since the 1960s?
How has Competition Policy adjusted to these changes?
Tutorial IV: Economics of the Environment
Comment on the reasons for divergence between GNP (Gross National Product) and ISEW (Index
of Sustainable Economic Welfare) for the UK in recent decades.
Explain how environmental taxes might be used to bring about a social optimum.
Explain why co-operative solutions such as the Kyoto protocol may be required if global
environmental issues are to be tackled effectively.
Tutorial V: Distribution of Income, Wealth and Poverty
How do we measure the distribution of income in the U.K?
How is the distribution of wealth measured in the U.K.?
What policies might we adopt to alleviate poverty in the

d. Work Required: Tutorials and Essays

Tutorials: You are expected to prepare for tutorials by: 1) Attending lectures. 2) Reading the course texts and
any other appropriate materials. 3) Thinking about the subject matter and the discussion questions for each
tutorial given above. 4) Completing the relevant quizzes found on the Blackboard site for this course; you will
receive brief automatic feedback on each quiz and the results will be recorded on Blackboard. Please note that
10% of your grade depends on your attendance at the five tutorials
The Essay Topic is:
Discuss the main factors affecting product pricing in the UK
The essay should be around 1000 words. Submit the essay, via labeled boxes in the third floor lobby of the
Arthur Lewis building as follows:
th
A Groups Wednesday November 10 ;
th
B Groups Wednesday November 17 .
These essays will be marked, annotated and returned in the second following week.

5.

Further information about assessment

Examination(s)
Weighting:

90%

Date:

December/January examination period

Length:

1.5 hours

Structure:

40 Multiple Choice Questions

Resits:

Please note that if you fail to pass this course as a whole, you will be
required to resit all examined components of the course in the August
resit examination period.

Past examination papers:

All students must be aware that any past-examination papers MUST

be referred to appropriately. Any past examination paper is merely
an aid to revision and MUST NOT be used as an exemplar as to the
content and style of an examination.
Content and style of examination paper may change from year to
year and ALL students must adequately prepare based on their own
syllabus (and not that from previous years), in conjunction with the
current Course Unit Outline.

Formally assessed coursework None

Assessment criteria
The criteria used by ES in the assessment of examinations and coursework can be found in the following
documents.
Document
Degree
BEconSc
Programme Handbook (available from Arthur Lewis Building, G.001)
BA (Econ), BA IBFE, and
Economic Studies Second and Third Year Handbooks and Course Unit
other undergraduate degrees Guides (available from Arthur Lewis Building, G.001)
Postgraduate
Programme Handbooks (available from Arthur Lewis Building, 2.003)
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is presenting the ideas, work or words of other people without proper, clear and unambiguous
acknowledgement. It also includes self-plagiarism (which occurs where, for example, you submit work
that you have presented for assessment on a previous occasion), and the submission of material from
essay banks (even if the authors of such material appear to be giving you permission to use it in this
way). Obviously, the most blatant example of plagiarism would be to copy another students work. Hence it
is essential to make clear in your assignments the distinction between:
the ideas and work of other people that you may have quite legitimately exploited and
developed, and
the ideas or material that you have personally contributed.
Plagiarism is a serious academic offence and the consequences are severe. Guidelines on plagiarism are
included in the documents listed above or can be found, together with general guidelines on the
universitys
examinations
process,
on
the
StudentNet
website.
(http://www.studentnet.manchester.ac.uk/crucial-guide/academic-life/formal-procedures/conduct-anddiscipline/ )
December/January exam marks
The marks for December/January examinations, as issued to undergraduate students by Faculty Office
and to graduate students by Programme Directors, are provisional marks and are provided for
information only.
Students are advised that:
1.
2.

these marks may be raised or lowered by the external examiners;

once marks have been agreed by the internal examiners and issued to students, they can only be
changed via the external examiners;
3. if the mark for a particular exam is both marginal and critical to the overall classification of a
student, the exam paper/assessed essay will be referred to the appropriate external examiner;
4. questions of compensation will be dealt with in June, when the full range of results is available;
5. marks are never confirmed until the meeting of the relevant Examinations Board in June;
6. the University does not countenance student appeals against the academic judgements of
Examiners;
7. the grounds on which a student may appeal are specified on the website
http://www.studentnet.manchester.ac.uk/crucial-guide/academic-life/formal-procedures/academic-appeals/