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ZIMSEC A Level · 9158/3 · J2007

Economics Paper 3 June 2007

Questions
20
Total marks
285
Syllabus code
9158/3

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Questions
20
Pass mark
12
Sit this paper

Answer every question in the printed order, get marked at the end, then see the answers.

The questions

Question 101

[1 marks]basic economic problem / scarcity
What is meant by the basic economic problem of scarcity?
  1. AUnlimited human wants for goods and services, set against limited resources available to satisfy them, forcing choices to be made.
  2. BA shortage of a particular good at its current price, which encourages firms to raise that price.
  3. CResources being left idle or wasted because a firm produces below its maximum possible output.
  4. DA situation where government spending exceeds the tax revenue it collects in a given year, forcing it to borrow money or raise taxes to cover the shortfall.

Question 201

[1 marks]price elasticity of demand
Which of the following factors makes the demand for a good more price elastic (more responsive to a change in price)?
  1. AThe good being a necessity that consumers must keep buying regardless of price changes, since there are few or no other goods that can satisfyingly replace it.
  2. BThe good taking up only a very small proportion of a consumer's total income.
  3. CConsumers having formed a strong habit of buying the good over a long period.
  4. DThe availability of close substitutes that consumers can switch to if the price of the good rises.

Question 301

[1 marks]profit concepts / firm efficiency
How does economic profit differ from accounting profit?
  1. AEconomic profit and accounting profit are two different names for exactly the same calculation.
  2. BEconomic profit subtracts the opportunity cost of resources the owner supplies, such as their own capital or time, in addition to the explicit costs deducted for accounting profit.
  3. CEconomic profit is calculated using only cash receipts and payments, while accounting profit includes non-cash items such as depreciation.
  4. DEconomic profit is always a larger figure than accounting profit, because it does not deduct explicit costs such as wages and rent.

Question 302

[1 marks]profit concepts / firm efficiency
State the economic term for the cost of the next best alternative given up when a resource is used in a particular way, which is deducted in arriving at economic profit but not accounting profit.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 401

[1 marks]market structures
Which of the following features is common to both perfect competition and monopolistic competition?
  1. AFreedom of entry and exit for new firms into the industry.
  2. BFirms producing identical, homogeneous products with no differentiation.
  3. CA single firm that supplies the entire output of the industry.
  4. DThe government fixing the price at which the product is sold.

Question 402

[1 marks]market structures
Which of the following distinguishes monopolistic competition from perfect competition?
  1. AFirms being permanently unable to earn any profit, even temporarily in the short run, regardless of how differentiated their product might be.
  2. BFirms facing no competition at all from other firms in the industry.
  3. CFirms selling differentiated products, giving each some control over its own price.
  4. DFirms being unable to freely enter or exit the industry in the long run.

Question 501

[1 marks]wage differentials / labour economics
Which theory explains wage differentials by arguing that, in a competitive labour market, a worker's wage reflects the value of that worker's marginal contribution to output?
  1. AThe monopsony theory of wages, which states that a single dominant employer can pay workers a wage below their marginal product.
  2. BThe marginal productivity theory of wages, which states that firms hire workers up to the point where the wage equals the value of the worker's marginal product.
  3. CThe theory of compensating wage differentials, which states that riskier or less pleasant jobs pay higher wages to compensate workers for those conditions.
  4. DThe human capital theory, which states that workers with more education and training earn higher wages because they are more productive, having invested time and money in acquiring valuable skills.

Question 601

[1 marks]market failure
Which of the following best describes market failure?
  1. AThe free market, left alone, failing to allocate resources efficiently, for example due to externalities or public goods.
  2. BGovernment intervention in the market, such as a legally imposed minimum price, causing the market price to rise above its free-market equilibrium level.
  3. CA firm making an accounting loss during a particular trading period.
  4. DConsumers switching from one brand to another because of a change in personal taste.

Question 602

[1 marks]market failure
State the economic term for a cost or benefit of an economic activity that falls on a third party not directly involved in that activity, causing the market price to fail to reflect the full social cost or benefit.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 701

[1 marks]privatisation / commercialisation
How does privatization differ from commercialization of a state-owned enterprise?
  1. APrivatization transfers ownership of the enterprise from the state to private shareholders, while commercialization keeps ownership with the state but requires it to operate on commercial, profit-oriented lines.
  2. BPrivatization and commercialization both mean the same thing: converting a loss-making parastatal into a profitable one under state ownership.
  3. CPrivatization keeps ownership with the state while removing government subsidies, and commercialization transfers ownership entirely to private shareholders.
  4. DPrivatization applies only to agricultural parastatals, and commercialization applies only to manufacturing parastatals.

Question 702

[1 marks]privatisation / commercialisation
State the term for the transfer of ownership of a state-owned enterprise from the government to the private sector.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 801

[1 marks]national income measurement / living standards
How is Net Domestic Product (NDP) at market prices obtained from Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at market prices?
  1. ABy adding depreciation (capital consumption) to GDP at market prices, since worn-out capital must be replaced.
  2. BBy adding net property income from abroad to GDP at market prices, since some of that output was earned by residents working or investing overseas.
  3. CBy subtracting depreciation (capital consumption) from GDP at market prices, since some output only replaces worn-out capital.
  4. DBy subtracting indirect taxes and adding subsidies to GDP at market prices, to reach factor cost.

Question 802

[1 marks]national income measurement / living standards
State the term for the deduction made from Gross Domestic Product at market prices, representing the value of capital equipment worn out during production, in order to arrive at Net Domestic Product.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 901

[1 marks]international trade / economic integration
What is a free trade area?
  1. AA group of countries that remove tariffs among themselves and also adopt a single common external tariff against non-member countries.
  2. BA group of countries that share a single currency and a single central bank while keeping separate tariffs against each other.
  3. CA group of countries that harmonise their fiscal and monetary policies but continue charging tariffs on goods traded among themselves.
  4. DA group of countries that remove tariffs and trade barriers on goods traded among themselves, while each member keeps its own separate tariffs against non-member countries.

Question 902

[1 marks]international trade / economic integration
What is an economic union?
  1. AA group of countries that meet occasionally to discuss trade issues but pass no binding agreements or common policies.
  2. BA group of member countries that, in addition to free trade and a common external tariff, also harmonise their economic policies such as fiscal, monetary, and regulatory policy.
  3. CA group of countries that remove tariffs and other trade barriers among themselves and also adopt a single, common external tariff applied uniformly against all non-member countries.
  4. DA single country that restricts all foreign trade in order to protect its domestic industries from competition.

Question 1001

[1 marks]inflation / anti-inflation policy
Which of the following describes cost-push inflation?
  1. AA general rise in prices caused by total demand in the economy persistently exceeding the economy's productive capacity.
  2. BA general rise in prices caused only by an increase in the price of imported goods and services.
  3. CA general rise in prices caused by increases in production costs, such as wages or raw material prices, which firms pass on as higher prices.
  4. DA general rise in prices caused by a country's money supply growing far faster than its output, leaving more money chasing the same quantity of goods and services.

Question 1002

[1 marks]inflation / anti-inflation policy
State the term for inflation caused by total spending in the economy persistently exceeding the total output the economy is able to produce.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1101

[1 marks]development economics / population
Which of the following is a characteristic typically used to describe a developing country?
  1. ALow population growth combined with an ageing population and a low dependency ratio.
  2. BAdvanced industrial infrastructure with the majority of the labour force employed in manufacturing.
  3. CHigh income per capita relative to developed countries, with the majority of output and employment generated by the tertiary, or services, sector of the economy.
  4. DLow income per capita relative to developed countries, with a large proportion of the population dependent on primary sector activities such as agriculture.

Question 1201

[1 marks]economic growth vs economic development
State the term for an increase in a country's real Gross Domestic Product, or its productive capacity, over time.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

Question 1202

[1 marks]economic growth vs economic development
State the broader economic term for the sustained improvement in a country's living standards, including reductions in poverty and improvements in health and education, rather than just an increase in output.

Answer this when you sit the paper.

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