ECON104-25S1 (C) Semester One 2025

Introduction to Microeconomics

15 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 17 February 2025
End Date: Sunday, 22 June 2025
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Sunday, 2 March 2025
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Sunday, 11 May 2025

Description

Scarcity, exchange and trade. Market analysis and policy. Consumer choice theory. Theory of the firm. Imperfect competition. Externalities and public goods.

ECON104 aims to:
• Develop economically literate citizens.
• Provide students with experience in basic economic methodology and analysis.
• Introduce students to the process of economic reasoning.
• Enhance students’ ability to critically interpret the economic ‘wisdom’ of the popular media.
• Provide preparation for further study in the subject (specifically with reference to courses at Canterbury).

ECON104 studies microeconomics, which examines theories of how consumers and producers behave and interact in individual markets. The course covers a general study of the workings of markets and a more in depth analysis of the two sides – supply (producers) and demand (consumers). The course also covers issues that do not fit the conventional assumptions of the supply and demand framework.

ECON104 is a prerequisite for ECON207 and 208, both of which are compulsory for students majoring in Economics or Business Economics. ECON104 is also required by NZICA and serves as a prerequisite for management courses.
Mathematics, in the form of simple algebra, will be used to introduce students to formal economic analysis and to complement the graphical and verbal exposition of material.

Learning Outcomes

1. Students will be able to 'think like an economist', and apply basic economic principles such as the role incentives play in people's behaviour.
2. Students will understand the concept of market efficiency, and will be able to analyse the impact of government policies.
3. Students will be able to identify and evaluate occasions when markets function best without direct government involvement.
4. Students will be able to identify and evaluate occasions when markets left on their own are unlikely to result in the best outcomes, and discuss the role of government in these markets.
5. Students will be able to use the theories of economics to describe and explain the behaviour of people and firms.

Restrictions

Timetable 2025

Students must attend one activity from each section.

Lecture A
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Tuesday 10:00 - 11:00 C1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
02 Tuesday 13:00 - 14:00 A1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
Lecture B
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Wednesday 10:00 - 11:00 C1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
02 Wednesday 13:00 - 14:00 A1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
Lecture C
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Thursday 10:00 - 11:00 C1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
02 Thursday 13:00 - 14:00 C1 Lecture Theatre
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
Tutorial A
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Monday 11:00 - 12:00 Meremere 105 Lecture Theatre
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
02 Monday 16:00 - 17:00 Ernest Rutherford 225
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
03 Tuesday 09:00 - 10:00 Psychology - Sociology 411
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
04 Friday 09:00 - 10:00 Psychology - Sociology 411
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
05 Friday 11:00 - 12:00 Psychology - Sociology 411
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
06 Friday 12:00 - 13:00 Ernest Rutherford 225
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
07 Friday 14:00 - 15:00 A8 Lecture Theatre
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
08 Monday 10:00 - 11:00 Rehua 427 Technology Workshop
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
09 Monday 14:00 - 15:00 E12
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
10 Thursday 09:00 - 10:00 Ernest Rutherford 225
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
11 Tuesday 16:00 - 17:00 Jack Erskine 244
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
12 Wednesday 12:00 - 13:00 Jack Erskine 445
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
13 Thursday 12:00 - 13:00 Ernest Rutherford 460
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
14 Thursday 15:00 - 16:00 A8 Lecture Theatre
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
15 Friday 15:00 - 16:00 Jack Erskine 441
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
16 Wednesday 11:00 - 12:00 Rehua 427 Technology Workshop
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
17 Wednesday 16:00 - 17:00 Jack Erskine 441
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
18 Thursday 14:00 - 15:00 A7
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
19 Friday 13:00 - 14:00 Link 309 Lecture Theatre
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
20 Tuesday 12:00 - 13:00 Beatrice Tinsley 112
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
21 Friday 09:00 - 10:00 Beatrice Tinsley 112
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
22 Monday 15:00 - 16:00 Jack Erskine 315
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
23 Thursday 16:00 - 17:00 Jack Erskine 244
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
24 Friday 10:00 - 11:00 Jack Erskine 446
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
25 Tuesday 15:00 - 16:00 Jack Erskine 445
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
26 Wednesday 09:00 - 10:00 Ernest Rutherford 460
3 Mar - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun

Course Coordinator

Steve Agnew

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage 
Tutorial Attendance & Participation 10%
Online Progress Test One 5%
On-Campus Term Test One 25%
Online Progress Test Two 5%
On-Campus Term Test Two 25%
Final Exam 30%

Textbooks / Resources

Recommended Reading

Parkin, M., & Bade, R; Microeconomics ; Pearson, Australia, 2016.

Some very readable books which give a very good introduction to the key ideas in economics include:
"New Ideas from Dead Economists" by Todd Buchholz
"The Undercover Economist" by Tim Harford
"Freakonomics" by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $946.00

International fee $4,363.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

For further information see Department of Economics and Finance .

All ECON104 Occurrences