Menu costs, Managerial Economics

Assignment Help:

Menu Costs 

Why do firms not change their prices very  frequently? Obviously, the costs of changing prices at  frequent intervals and in small amounts must be more  than the benefits obtained from such a change. Firms prefer to wait before they make price changes in relatively large amounts and in the mean time absorb the losses that they would  suffer by not changing prices. This of course presumes that the firms  have  some monopolistic price setting power and  the  losses referred to above include lower profits  than would have been possible  if prices had been raised, and not necessarily actual out-of-pocket losses.

It  is  easy to understand  this  behaviour  of monopolistically competitive firms through the example of restaurants competing with each other. The term  'menu costs' immediately becomes meaningful as the costs that would be  incurred  in changing the menu cards every time there  is a change in the prices of items on the menu. These printing costs are surely negligible, but  the more  important costs are in terms of the loss of customers that a firm would face if it subjects its clientele to the 'irritability'  of continuous, small changes in prices. The concept  of menu costs in  a modem economy  is  indeed broad.  It  is  also widely applicable, given  the proliferation of automatic dispensers (e.g., coffee machines) and pay  telephones that operate on coins.  

It  is easy to  imagine  the cost that would be  incurred by  the suppliers if these ubiquitous machines were to be adjusted every time a price change is effected. The firms would rather not change their prices.  It  is  this idea  of weighing  the  costs  of  changing prices against the benefits obtained  from  changing prices that  is  formalised  in  the Mankiw model that we consider below.    


Related Discussions:- Menu costs

Barriers to entry in pure oligopoly, Barriers to entry in pure oligopoly ...

Barriers to entry in pure oligopoly The barriers to entry can be artificial or natural. Artificial Barriers This can be acquired through: State protection throu

Pigou effect, The pigou effect, also called the real balance effect, is nam...

The pigou effect, also called the real balance effect, is named after the well known Cambridge school economist Arthur Cecil pigou who had first clearly formulated the relationship

Income and substitution effects of price change, Income and Substitution Ef...

Income and Substitution Effects of Price Change When the price of a commodity falls the consumer's equilibrium changes.  The consumer can purchase the same quantity of X and Y

Definition of perfect competition, 1. Prof. Marshall 'The more nearly perfe...

1. Prof. Marshall 'The more nearly perfect a market is, the stronger is the tendency for same price to be paid for same thing at the same time in all parts of the market". 2. Pr

Define managerial economics according to mcnair and meriam, Define Manageri...

Define Managerial economics according to McNair and Meriam McNair and Meriam:  "Managerial economics comprises the use of economic modes of thought to analyse business situatio

Elasticity of demand, a. Explain why the demand for a particular brand is m...

a. Explain why the demand for a particular brand is more elastic than the demand for all cigarettes. If Lucky Strike raised its price by 1% in 1918, was the price elast

Illustrate internal economies of scale, Q. Illustrate Internal Economies of...

Q. Illustrate Internal Economies of Scale? Internal economies of scale are the benefits of large scale production. They are enjoyed by the firm when it increases its scale of p

What kind of price discrimination, Imagine an amusement park with a sole at...

Imagine an amusement park with a sole attraction: a roller coaster. For simplicity, the cost of providing a ride is zero. There is a single consumer with demand for rides on the ro

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd