Questions tagged [profit-maximization]
A modelling approach in which firms' plants are chosen via maximizing a profit function under a demand or resource limit restriction.
65
questions
0
votes
1answer
29 views
Maximizing units under a budget constraint and increasing costs
Consider two columns.
Column A has total cost per day, Column B has units bought that day. The marginal cost of each unit is increasing because of limited supply.
My goal is to estimate total ...
1
vote
1answer
46 views
Value Function For Durable-Good Monopolist with General Distribution
It is known that with a unit mass of consumers, each of whom has a value distributed between 0 and 1, one can think of the monopolist solving
\begin{equation}
\max_{p} \ p[1-F(p)]
\end{equation}
when ...
1
vote
3answers
89 views
Why are there not more competitive nonprofits?
For example, when I go to the grocery, and peruse the various goods for sale on the shelves, there is at least a 99.9% chance that any given product is produced for-profit. Even "Newman's Own", which ...
1
vote
0answers
34 views
Why equilibrium efficiency wage maximizes worker effort per dollar wage
In the Keynesian model,
to make as much profit as possible, firms will choose the level of the
real wage that gets the most effort from workers for each dollar of
real wages paid
Source: ...
0
votes
1answer
27 views
Production function involving profit maximisation
Hi, I don't get how the answer of d is deduced in this question because I don't think I made any mistakes in my calculation and have also used all the information given. After knowing L is 800, I ...
2
votes
0answers
86 views
Derivation of demand function
Hello.
I'm graduate student in Japan.
This time, what I want to ask is how to solve the profit maximization problem using the image production function and derive the demand function.
This ...
2
votes
1answer
52 views
CES production function profit and supply function
I need to derive the profit function for the following CES function: $$ f(z) = (\sqrt{z_{1}^{\rho} + z_{2}^{\rho}})^{1/ \rho}$$ where $\rho \leq 1$. This is the answer that I am supposed to be getting:...
0
votes
2answers
51 views
In the real world, how does a firm know their marginal costs and revenue? How do they mathematically calculate MC=MR?
I understand the theory behind it but in practice how is this done?
2
votes
2answers
227 views
Stackelberg with 3 firms
I'm currently trying to solve the following problem:
Stackelberg with 3 firms Imagine there are three firms on a monopolistically competitive
market. The marginal cost of produc- tion in each ...
2
votes
0answers
146 views
Finding long run equilibrium price, quantity and number of firms with a linear average cost function
I've been been brushing up on my micoreocnomics lately and I came across a question in Perloff that looked really simple, but for some reason I am struggling to answer:
Assume we are in the long run ...
0
votes
0answers
230 views
Question about an economy with 3 components household, firm and government with functions given
I've spent considerable amount of time on this question, in vain. It is from one of the competitive exams for admission to a grad econ program. Help would be tremendously appreciated. Thanks.
An ...
0
votes
0answers
23 views
Question on Finding the Correct Emission Tax $t$
Let there be two companies $U_{1}$ and $U_{2}$ where, initially $U_{1}$ produces and sells $x$ units at $p=18$. Production costs are $C_{U_{1}}(x)=\frac{1}{6}x^3$ and in the process $a$ units of ...
1
vote
1answer
25 views
Effect of changing MC on monopolists' maximised profits
Let a monopolist have constant MC = c, with no fixed costs. If $p(c)$ and $q(c)$ are the profit maximising price and output as a function of MC and the market demand schedule is given by $q = D(p)$, ...
1
vote
0answers
72 views
Profit maximization problem using linear regression (pooled OLS)
I'm currently on a university assignment where I'm stuck more or less in the middle. I have to answer the following problem:
Suppose you are interested in estimating the production function for ...
-2
votes
1answer
152 views
Maximizing a Cobb-Douglas Function
Suppose that a competitive firm receives a price of $P$ for its output, and pays prices of w, r and v for its labor $(L)$, capital $(K)$ and natural resources $(R)$ inputs, respectively. The firm ...
2
votes
0answers
56 views
Convexity of profit function
The profit function is convex in prices. Are there any conditions under which it is linear in prices? (The property as written in most books doesn't mention strict convexity, so it seems to suggest ...
1
vote
1answer
1k views
Profit maximization and returns to scale relation
Suppose we have 2 inputs a and b , output is y=f(a,b).
In the long run, let us suppose profits are maximized at a* and b*.
Profit is py-wa-kb[p is price and w and k are constants]. Now for max profit, ...
3
votes
3answers
115 views
Is “$f(k,l)$ is decreasing return to scale $\Leftrightarrow f_{ll}f_{kk}-f_{kl}^2>0$” always true?
For the productions $f(k,l) $ that are continuously differentiable, is the proposition that
"$f(k,l)$ is decreasing return to scale $\Leftrightarrow f_{ll}f_{kk}-f_{kl}^2>0$"
always true, I have ...
4
votes
1answer
74 views
Decision over “max” production function:
I've been presented with the following problem:
$$y=3(x_3)^{\frac13}(\max\{x_1,8x_2\})^{\frac13}$$
And the objective is to both maximize profit and minimize cost. First of all, if the problems are ...
1
vote
1answer
22 views
Understanding the use case of farming crickets in developed countries
Currently, farming crickets is quite labor intensive.
No wonder that if you compare prices, in developed countries you get crickets at say \$100/kg, while in Thailand they cost under \$2/pound, in an ...
1
vote
2answers
28 views
2 firms production decision for one agent
I'm trying to solve the optimal production $\{x,y\}$ for a risk neutral agent with weight $w$ in firm $X$ and weight $1-w$ in firm $Y$. Each firm has marginal cost $c^X$ and $c^Y$ respectively. The ...
0
votes
1answer
20 views
When to invest into additional products?
This is a very applied question so I hope it's the correct adress here for it:
I'm running a small entertaining business for virtual reality experiences. Investment was about 120 k. I now build it ...
4
votes
4answers
143 views
If house prices appreciate, why do developers sell them?
In many parts of the world, people buy a house expecting its value to increase over time.
But if is widely believed that the building's value will increase, what incentive is there for the developer ...
-1
votes
1answer
268 views
Profit maximization and allocative efficiency result
I completely stuck to the last part of this exercise. I cannot understand how can I determine an allocative efficiency result.
Any help will be appreciated. Thank you.
0
votes
2answers
545 views
Question on profit maximization with government taxation
(I) A monopolist has a cost function $c(q)=q$. It faces the following demand function $ q(p)=100/p$ for $p\le 20$ and $q(p)=0$ for $p\ge 20$. What are the profit maximizing price and output.
(ii) a ...
1
vote
1answer
25 views
How to calculate the optimal wage and the optimal rent on capital in an economic model?
In Dhondt & Heylen (2009)*, they specify a certain production function.
Under some standard model assumptions such as perfect competition and so on, they calculate the optimal wage as
$$ w_t = \...
0
votes
1answer
82 views
When do firms pursue the cost minimization objective instead of profit maximization? Are there any intuitive/practical examples/reasons?
I understand that profit maximization implies cost minimization, that is, if a firm is maximizing profits, it will definitely minimize costs.
However, under what conditions does cost minimization ...
1
vote
0answers
181 views
Firm's profit max problem, in present value terms
So I am kinda stuck on this question. The question goes as follows:
Consider a multiperiod firm, selling q1 units of a product in period t=1 at spot price P1 and q2 units in period t=2 at spot price ...
2
votes
1answer
88 views
How to work out Price with only the Derivative of Profit Function?
Best response functions are obtained by differentiating a profit function and solving for q.
In equilibrium, the firms produce 30. But, there's no inverse demand function, so how would equilibrium ...
1
vote
1answer
204 views
Revenue maximization
We have two firms with identical cost structure compete in a market
Demand function = $p=a-bq$
And $q=q_1+q_2$
They are identical in every way. However, firm 1 maximizes profit and firm 2 ...
2
votes
1answer
203 views
Cournot equilibrium question
There are two firs in the market. They produce perfect substitutes at cost $c(y_i)=y_i/3$ for i=1,2. The demand function is $p=1-(y_1+y_2)$
Consider the Cournot competition where firms ...
1
vote
1answer
111 views
Profit maximization question
Two firms are in a market together. They produce a product.
Total revenue from sales is $y=K+L$
K is the amount of capital
L is the amount of labor
These two firms each specialized in supplying ...
2
votes
2answers
2k views
Utility maximization question setting up.
Consider a consumer whose preferences can be represented by the following utility function: $$u(x_1,x_2)=\dfrac{x_2}{(1+x_1)^2}.$$
Assume the agent's income is $y=5$. The price of one unit ...
3
votes
1answer
57 views
The relationship between gross profit and tax
I tried to do following question but I am not sure about my solution. Please tell me your opinions
Since gross profit is strictly concave, I can say that $R’’(y)-C’’(y) <0$
Now I maximize the ...
2
votes
1answer
77 views
Profit Function: Just revenue maximization subject to constraint? if so where is $\lambda$?
Disclaimer: I dont know i'm getting confused with basic microeconomic prodoucer theory (note: Ive been watching some Hak Choi Videos on youtube),but this is my overall thought process.
We know that ...
0
votes
1answer
57 views
How to prove that a point is a maximum point
I have the following function:
$$
\Pi =\int_{0}^{z}[x_{1} + \alpha y + \alpha \frac{N-2}{2}y - \beta(z) - \gamma ( \beta(z) - \beta(y))](N-1)y^{N-2} dy $$
The first derivative with respect to $z$ is:...
0
votes
0answers
41 views
How to find right MRP_L in this economic problem?
Economic problem from my textbook (here is my translation from Russian):
There is a firm that is both monopoly and monopsony. It's monopoly on market of its product and it's monopsony on labor market ...
1
vote
1answer
951 views
Cartel profit maximizing quantity question (Cournot game)
Find the Nash equilibrium of Cournot’s game when there are two firms, the inverse demand function is P(Q) = α – Q when α ≥ Q and 0 otherwise, and the cost function of each firm I is Ci(qi) = qi2. If ...
3
votes
1answer
58 views
Profit maximization under uncertainity
I have a seller say S and I have a buyer say B. Buyer’s willing to pay is equal to x which is private information. But Seller believe that it falls in the range [0,x1]. Seller’s belief distribution is ...
4
votes
1answer
536 views
Could someone please explain the proof of Hotelling's lemma?
According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hotelling%27s_lemma,
the maximum of the firm's profit at some output is given by the minimum of the difference between the profit and the revenue.
However,...
12
votes
2answers
2k views
Monopolies are just a mathematical misunderstanding
A little head-scratcher (and a good example why we should be careful with notation).
Consider a profit maximizing monopoly, that solves over price
$$\max \pi = PQ(P) - C(Q(P)) \tag{1}$$
Following ...
1
vote
1answer
1k views
Profit maximization with Cobb-Douglas function
I'm trying to maximize a firm's profit given the production function $F(L,K)=L^\alpha K^\beta$ (where $L$ is labor and $K$ is capital) and that $\alpha + \beta \neq 1$.
So, I know that this ...
0
votes
2answers
31 views
How do calculate whether selling a product leads to profit?
To simplify things, imagine a company which sells two products, A, and B, and it has two types of revenues, two types of variable costs, and 1 type of fixed costs.
I can calculate margins by taking ...
2
votes
1answer
139 views
Expectations in Gali's classical monetary model
In Gali chapter 2 we have the following constraint to the classical monetary model
$P_t C_t + Q_t B_t \leq B_{t-1} + W_t N_t-T_t$.
Then it seems that this is treated as an equality. Therefore my ...
2
votes
1answer
171 views
Help with this microeconomics exercise
The question:
A price-taking farmer produces a crop with labor L as the only input.
His production function is:$$F(L) = 10L^{1/2} − 2L$$
He has 4 units of labor
in his family and he cannot hire ...
-1
votes
1answer
873 views
Profit maximisation and cost minimization [closed]
Does profit maximisation always imply cost minimisation ? And
Does cost minimization always imply profit maximisation ?
Can we prove both the results ??
5
votes
3answers
1k views
Why are firms taken to be profit-maximizing? Shouldn't that make them risk-neutral?
Intro texts normally explain that insurance firms (casinos, etc.) "work" by diversifying risk from many clients. Unsaid, then, seems to be that risk is bad for both firm and client.
But why should a ...
1
vote
1answer
39 views
What does this condition for a profit of a firm exist mean?
What is the intuition behind this?
Let $Y=zF(K,N)$ be a production function.
For a profit to exist Indana conditions must hold and :
$$\frac{∂^2zF(K,N^d)}{\partial K \partial N} > 0$$
I ...
1
vote
0answers
198 views
How Would a Firm Which Produces a Giffen Good Maximize Profits?
I am curious as to how a firm which produces a giffen good would maximize profits? Having an upward sloping demand curve seems to imply that we cannot guarantee that there exists a quantity where ...
1
vote
1answer
269 views
Why do firms adjust their fixed costs in response to a change in price in a perfectly competitive market?
When firms make a profit in a perfectly competitive market, new firms enter the market and drive the price down. My textbook says that the existing firms will then adjust inputs that are fixed in the ...
