Course Description for APEC 7130

This course covers the same areas in microeconomics as in your introductory principles and intermediate theory courses, but at a more rigorous, graduate level. We begin by covering topics in consumer theory, in particular examining the preferences and choices of a typical consumer, and ultimately analyzing the behavior of this consumer in a budget-constrained, utility-maximizing, i.e., “classical demand” setting. In this setting we examine the relationships between utility maximization, revealed preference, and demand. We also look closely at the various measures of consumer welfare (e.g. consumers’ surplus). We then turn our attention to producer theory, in particular understanding the technological constraints facing dual profit-maximizing/cost-minimizing producers and the supply and demand behaviors that are governed by the various properties of these constraints. Time permitting, we will end the course by examining the various market structures within which producers and consumers interact. We will explore the standard structures and implications of perfect competition, monopoly, and oligopoly, which include introductions to welfare analysis, price discrimination, and static and dynamic game theory.