Find data on oil price changes over the last decade or so, and present the data on an appropriate group. Comment briefly on the trends shown by this data.
Find data on oil price changes over the last decade or so, and present the data on an appropriate group. Comment briefly on the trends shown by this data. Introduction In this assignment I need to find data on oil price changes over the last decade and present the data on a graph and comment on the trends shown by the data. I have compiled some data on Brent Crude oil which I have presented in a graph. The data has been researched from www.opec.org. What is crude oil? Crude oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons that exists in a liquid phase in natural underground reservoirs and remains liquid at atmospheric pressure after passing through surface separating facilities. Figure 1 shows the price on Brent Crude oil from 1996 to 2005. The oil prices have fluctuated throughout these years. After 2003 the prices have started increasing excessively during uncertainties about Iraq and the Middle East. The prices of oil were low in cost at about $15 to $25 a barrel between 1996 and 2001, and demand of oil was not high either. The price has nearly tripled in the last decade this is because the demand has increased so the price has also increased. From figure 1 it shows that when the price on oil is increasing the goods and services become expensive and economies experience inflation. The price on crude oil rose throughout 2004 and 2005, as the global oil demand increased
Factors that Influence Consumer Behaviour Patterns, when Purchasing Fashion Items.
Factors that Influence Consumer Behaviour Patterns, when Purchasing Fashion Items .0 Introduction Consumer behaviour is a complicated and diverse area of study. Since marketing is based on identifying, anticipating and providing customer needs it is important to understand them. There are two predominant types of buying: consumer buying, which consists of buying products for personal use, and organisational buying, which involves buying for organisational purposes. For marketers to satisfy consumer needs more fully than competitors it is important to recognise the elements that influence buying. This report will identify the main factors influencing consumer behaviour patterns, particularly when purchasing fashion items. It will examine how buyer characteristics influence buyer behaviour and also how retailers react to such characteristics. In particular this report will look at the cultural factors, demographic factors and psychological factors that influence consumer buying. Contents .0 Introduction 1 2.0 Methodology 2 3.0 Cultural Factors 3 3.1 Reference groups 4 3.2 Sub-culture 5 3.3 Social class 6 4.0 Demographical Factors 7 4.1 The Life Cycle Stage 8 5.0 Psychological Factors 9 5.1 Lifestyle Variables 10 5.2 Perception and Motivation 11 5.3 Personality 12 6.0 Market Segmentation, Target
In operations management, our focus is on efficiency in order to reduce unit costs and improve quality. This also includes speed of operation.These three factors - speed, quality, cost - are the key factors in determining a firm's competitive advantage.
Operations Management In operations management, our focus is on efficiency in order to reduce unit costs and improve quality. This also includes speed of operation. These three factors - speed, quality, cost - are the key factors in determining a firm's competitive advantage. Job Production: This occurs when a firm produces specialised or one-off items for its customers e.g. Artist, furniture maker, wedding dress designer. It is usually labour intensive and always very expensive to produce the product. However, the costs of production are reflected in the price which is high as a strong U.S.P. accompanies the product. Batch Production: In batch production groups of items move through the different stages of production process at the same time. For example paint, wallpaper, cakes etc. Batch production requires a huge amount of planning and high stock levels because the firm must wait for all the items to finish one stage before moving to the next. In batch production there is often `downtime' - this is the time taken to re-set the machines and change batches. Flow Production: This is used to produce high volumes of similar or the same product. The production process is synchronised and continuous meaning that it is highly capital intensive. It is difficult to use this method if demand is small, fluctuating, or consumer taste is individualistic.
State and federal wage
State and Federal Systems Paper The following essay will address the differences and similarities between state and federal systems of government in their application of employment laws. Several examples of employment protections that are provided by state systems but not by the federal system will be also provided. In order to understand why some federal laws differ from state laws we must first begin by defining the powers of our government. Federalism is the principle that divides the powers between governments and makes provisions for change within the various levels. The United States Constitution divides some powers between state and federal governments, designates which powers are to be shared, and also disallows some power to each level. The three types of power that are delegated to the federal government by the Constitution are defined as expressed, implied and inherent. The majority of federal laws that apply to employment and labor are inherent powers and are those which give the federal government power to carry out the U.S. Constitution. The powers which the Constitution provides to state governments are known as reserved powers. The 10th Amendment defines reserved powers as those not expressly delegated to the federal government or held by the people not prohibited to the states. (Texas Education Agency Social Studies Center
The hypothalamic hormone, growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH).
Introduction The hypothalamic hormone, growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), stimulates the release of growth hormone (GH) from cells of the pituitary. It is known that GHRH binds to receptors on the plasma membrane of pituitary cells to activate the cAMP second messenger system leading to GH release. A novel peptide has recently been synthesized in the laboratory that also stimulates the release of GH from pituitary cells. This peptide has been named growth hormone stimulator (GHS) In this paper, we attempt to characterize the action mechanism by which the GHS affects the pituitary cells. Materials and Methods Time Course Experiment The serum-free media prepared before the experiment contained: 0.2% BST, 120 nM transferring, 100 nM hydrocortisone, 0.6 nM triiodothyronine, 5 U/litre insulin, 3 nM glucagon, 50 nM parathyroid hormone, 2 mM glutamine, 15 nM EGF, and penicillin/streptomycin. Four culture dishes containing GH4 cells were used per time point, for each of GHRH and GHS. Medium and cell extract samples were taken from 4 untreated dishes before the start of the experiment to provide the time = 0 min values. The medium from the culture plates was pipetted off and replaced with the serum-free media. The appropriate volumes of stock GHRH or GHS were added to achieve final concentrations of 10-9 M for the GHRH and 10-11 M for the GHS. 5 mM acetic acid was added to
The effect of an increase in gas prices on the supply of and demand for gas and electricity, in the short and long term
THE EFFECT OF AN INCREASE IN GAS PRICES ON THE SUPPLY OF AND DEMAND FOR GAS AND ELECTRICITY, IN THE SHORT & LONG TERM Adrian Daniels 1/1/2008 CONTENTS REFERENCES PAGE 9 The Economist (The Economist, 2008) has reported that energy prices are getting 'higher and higher'. This is especially for Electricity and Gas. Consider an effect of gas prices increasing, being that people will switch to alternative energy providers. For example, from the United Kingdom's number one Gas and Electricity provider 'British Gas', to 'EDF'. This may only apply to people involved in the lower end of the national wealth distribution. People who form the higher end of the national wealth distribution may not even realise the change in price that has been made to the gas and electricity prices. For instance, the '1% of the United Kingdom's population who own 21% of the nation's wealth' (Inland Revenue, 2006) .Thus they are very unlikely to react towards this change. On the other hand, people who form the lower end of the national wealth distribution (such as pensioners) will notice this increase in gas and electricity costs. Their income is significantly lower than those in the higher end of the wealth distribution, so they have to monitor their household income and budget with their spending. As a result, Families may have to switch utility companies if prices charged by 'British Gas'
indifference curve analysis
Using indifference curve analysis, explain how consumers maximise their utility. Using income and substitution effect show why demand curves for both normal and inferior goods are downward sloping. The aim of indifference curve analysis is to analyse how a rational consumer chooses between two goods. In other words, how they in wage rate will affect the choices between leisure time and work time. A curve used in economics, which shows how consumers would react to different combinations pf products. On the graph, a quantity of one product appears on the x-axis and a quantity of another product appears on the y-axis. Consumers would be equally satisfied at any point along a given curve, as each point brings the same level of satisfaction to that consumer. "An indifference curve analysis is a line that shows all the possible combinations of two goods between which a person is indifferent."1 It is the line shows the consumption of different consumption of two goods that will give the same utility (satisfaction) to the person. Indifference curve analysis combines two concepts indifference curve and budget lines (constraints). For instance, a person would receive same satisfaction for consuming 4 hours of work and 6 hours of leisure, as they would if they consumed 7 hrs of work and 3 hours of leisure. The figure shows the indifference curve. The use of indifference curve
Analyse the behaviour of consumers when choosing a mobile phone.
Analyse the behaviour of consumers when choosing a mobile phone. Consumers go through a number of processes from the moment they feel the need to buy something, right through to actually taking action to do so. The 'buyers consciousness' will be triggered by a number of stimuli. These stimuli may be in the form of marketing or the environment in which consumers are in. Consumers are constantly in face to face contact with messages and adverts that are the stimuli and are there to hopefully trigger the response into feeling the need to go out and buy a certain product. Vodafone are especially successful at this with there sponsorship schemes of high profile sports teams. Such teams include the England cricket team and possibly the most famous football club in the world, Manchester United. It is clever marketing such as this that will plant there logo into the viewing publics memory in the effort to gain a recognition and feeling of belonging with their companies logo, which will inevitably benefit their company if a consumer is looking to buy a new phone. The buyers consciousness is the 'black box' that marketers need to understand. The consumer as a 'black box'. A consumer's motivation for buying a phone may come from variety of different needs that they want to fulfil. There may be a number of different motives for a consumer to buy a mobile phone, some of which may be
This report assesses the opportunity offered to Carol's Cookies by the order for 20,000 boxes of Crunchies by a supermarket chain.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report assesses the opportunity offered to Carol's Cookies by the order for 20,000 boxes of Crunchies by a supermarket chain. The report compares both the short term and long term by using two costing methods - relevant costing and full costing. Using relevant costing it has been shown that purely on a financial basis accepting the order in the short term will increase relevant cash flow by £105,000, even with the loss of revenue and production of 6,000 boxes of Boosters. This is due to having 60 tonnes of Material B in stock and the under utilisation of Labour Grade 1. However, the weight of the short term financial gain must outweigh any risks associated with the reduced production of Boosters. In the long term the full costing approach shows Crunchies being sold at a loss. A repeat order would improve both the OAR and the utilisation of the Labour Grade 1. However, we would recommend that prior to accepting a contract for repeat orders the board should assess both the qualitative and quantitative factors as described in this report. INTRODUCTION Carol's Cookies has been given the opportunity to supply a supermarket chain with 20,000 boxes of Crunchies, which could lead to future repeat business. Carol Snape, the Managing Director, who is keen to accept his order, has been advised by the Financial Account, Kevin Clark, that this would
Assess the validity of the following statement: "Economies of learning are nothing but economies of scale over time." Give an example of an industry in which there are strong economies of scale but only weak economies of learning.
Assess the validity of the following statement: "Economies of learning are nothing but economies of scale over time." Give an example of an industry in which there are strong economies of scale but only weak economies of learning. By definition, economy of scale is where average cost declines with increase in output. This could flow from indivisibles such as specialised machinery, fixed costs including R&D and advertising, the cube-square rule and inventories. Economy of learning is where decrease in average cost arises from accumulating experience and know-how. The graph below also helps to illustrate the difference between the two in showing how economies of learning is different from economies of scale: Cost per unit A B AC1 C AC2 output Economies of scale moves a firm from X to Y where increase in output, decreases the cost per unit. Learning economies shift the firm from X to Z given the same output. The firm moves to a new average cost curve. Overtime, a firm with high economies of scale might move further beyond Y along AC1. But it may not shift to AC2, so the economies can exist without each other and economies of scale over time may not be accompanied by economies of learning. Intuitively the statement is also invalid because, for instance, a very capital intensive industry might gain a great deal of economy of