ECN236 Module 4 Quiz

The "law of supply" functions in labor markets; that is, a higher what for labor leads to a higher quantity of labor supplied?

Price

As the which of the following substitute for low-skill labor becomes available, the demand curve for low-skill labor will shift to the left.

Technology

Improvements in the productivity of labor will tend to:

increase wages.

Which of the following will not result in a leftward shift of the market demand curve for labor?

an increase in the wage rate

Which of the following results in a rightward shift of the market demand curve for labor?

an increase in demand for the firm's product

Which of the following will not result in a rightward shift of the market supply curve for labor?

an increase in labor productivity

If the demand for software engineers__________slower than does supply, then wages of software engineers will______.

increases; fall

In contrast to goods and services markets,________are rare in labor markets, because rules that prevent people from earning income are not politically popular.

Price ceilings

Since Baltimore passed the first_______in 1994, several dozen cities enacted similar laws in the late 1990s and into the 2000s.

Living wage tax

Other things being equal, a________supply of workers tends to_______real wages.

larger; decrease

Many states do have_______-, which impose an upper limit on the interest rate that lenders can charge.

usury laws

When consumers and businesses have greater confidence that they will be able to repay in the future,

the quantity demanded of financial capital at any given interest rate will shift to the right.

If labor demand is downward sloping and labor supply is upward sloping, then when labor demand rises faster than labor supply, it is expected that real wages

will increase

The labor_______curve(s) will shift______if there is an increase in productivity or an increase in the demand for the final product.

demand; right

A straightforward example of a__________, often used for simplicity, is the interest rate.

Rate of return

Many economists believe that the trend toward greater wage inequality across the U.S. economy was primarily caused by

new technologies

As the______complement for high-skill labor becomes cheaper, the demand curve for high- skill labor will shift to the right.

Technology

Many cooks view butter and margarine to be substitutes. If the price of butter rises, then in the market for margarine:

both the equilibrium price and quantity will rise

The supply curve of textbooks (which are produced using paper made from trees) will shift to the left in response to:

a sharp increase in the demand for and construction of wood-frame homes.

Steel mill wage costs increase by 18 percent over a year. What is the likely economic effect on the market for steel?

There is an increase in the cost of producing steel, which shifts the supply curve of steel to the left, thereby increasing the price of steel.

How do apple growers react to the news of medical research findings that suggest that eating apples leads to greater health benefits than were previously known?

They increase the quantity of apples supplied.

Are markets always in equilibrium?

No, but if there is no outside interference, they tend to move toward equilibrium.

The imposition of a price ceiling on a market often results in:

a shortage

On April 1, 2009, in the middle of a recession, the government of the province of Ontario, Canada increased the provincial minimum wage from $8.75 to $9.50. What will the likely effect of this policy be?

Both the leftward shift in the labor demand curve and the higher minimum wage will lead to an increase in the unemployment rate.

Whenever there is a shortage at a particular price, the quantity sold at that price will equal:

the quantity supplied at that price.

Whenever there is a surplus at a particular price, the quantity sold at that price will equal:

the quantity demanded at that price.