Introduction to International Economics - Free Essay Example

Introduction to International Economics a- Explain how the role of the Mercantilism practice between 1500- to the late 1700s century has influence the International Trade Theories in the 19th -21st century. In general, international trade is economic trade, such as trade in products, the movement of capital and labour and service trade, that made beyond the border. International trade theory is a brunch of economics that the study about every motive for economic activity and the effects made across the border. To put in concretely, international trade theory treats why trade occurs between nations, what products a nation exports and imports when they participate in trade, what profits countries that taking part in trade will gain and how the profits are distributed among nations. It is also important subject of study that what economic effect is, when a nation interrupt free trade flows directly and indirectly by trade policy. International trade theory was started with the publication of The Wealth of Nations in 1776, Adam Smith, however before then, there was some writings already about international trade and these writings was contained economic philosophy as known as mercantilism. Mercantilism was the economic theory supporting economic policies that European countries had adopted in 15th- and 18th century during the collapse of the feudal system. Mercantilist argued that restricting the import and encouraging the export in order to increase the wealth of the country. Mercantilism thought profits occur in the process of distribution, not the process of production, and that how much precious metals they have such as gold and silver being used all over the world means the wealth of the nation. But it led to depreciation of gold and silver because the amount of precious metals became excessively large. Then over the end of the 18th century and 19th century, mercantilism have been changed in the form of economic nationalism. Economic nationalism found the motive power of national economic development from within. They argued that to maintain independent status politically, economic also need to secure an independent phase. In the late 20th century, Neo-mercantilism emerged because it was difficult to predict what will happen in the future so they argued that the need to protect domestic manufacturers, economically ahead in another country and strengthen national security. b- Examine why countries engage in trade and the benefits of specialization and trade between countries. c- When you sit down for your evening meal try to estimate the number of people and transactions that are required to bring your meal to you be as lateral, imaginative and as specific as possible. Question 2 Trade structure of your chosen countries a- Analysis b- Data table Table 1 : Basic economic indicators and trade structure of Spain and Saudi Arabia in 2013/2014 Spain Saudi Arabia Land area(sq. km.) 505,600 2,149,690 GDP(current USD, millions) 1,358,263 745,273 CNI per capita(current USD) 29,940 26,260 Total Trade (X+M) (current USD, millions) 892,976 606,939 Total export(current USD, millions) 461,808 387,080 Total import(current USD, millions) 431,168 219,859 Trade to GDP ratio(%, 2011-2013) 64.2 80.7 Share of exports (%) Agricultural products 16.7 1.3 Fuels and mining products 12.8 83.6 Manufactures 68.3 15.0 Share of imports (%) Agricultural products 12.3 15.1 Fuels and mining products 26.2 5.4 Manufactures 61.0 76.5 Source : eurostat 2013 (https://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=nama_exi_clang=en) worldbank 2013 (https://databank.worldbank.org/data/views/reports/tableview.aspx) WTO 2014 (https://stat.wto.org/CountryProfile/WSDBCountryPFView.aspx?Country=ESLanguage=F) Question 3 Absolute advantage Explain the theory When an economic entity produces a good or service at a lower cost compared to other economic entities, the economic entity is said to have an absolute advantage. For example, suppose Australia produces 100 cars per year, while New Zealand produces 50 cars per year. Australia has an absolute advantage because it produces more cars(the output) in the same amount of time(the input) as New Zealand. Adam Smith redefined the concept of the national wealth unlike mercantilists and in accordance with the absolute advantage, he argued international division of labour and free trade. He thought the national wealth should be evaluated by amount of good and service which people of the nation can consume, not by amount of precious metals a nation has. Adam Smith also argued that if the two countries in a free trade, it is possible to maximize the output of the world by specialization completely product that each country produced more efficiently than the other country. Ultimately Adam Smith viewed a free trade by absolute advantage as a win-win game, and argued that the more countries participate in trade, the more the people of the two countries can consume. Analysis of absolute advantage of Spain and Saudi Arabia Data table Table 2 : Production four selected agricultural products of Spain and Saudi Arabia in 2011/2014 Spain(2011/2014) Saudi Arabia Product Total production (thousands of tonnes) Yield (kg/hectare) Total production (tonne) Yield (kg/hectare) Apricots 86.9 21,318 ha Berries 262.9 1,782 ha Pulses 825.8 378,909 ha Figs 29.1 21,402 ha Source : Spain : total production 2011 Instituto Nacional de EstadÃÆ'Â ­stica (https://www.ine.es/jaxi/tabla.do?path=/t01/a091/a1998/l1/file=a70001.pxtype=pcaxisL=1) / Yield 2014 Encuesta Sobre Superficies Y Rendimientos De Cultivos 2014 (https://www.magrama.gob.es/es/estadistica/temas/estadisticas-agrarias/00ESPAÃÆ'‘A_tcm7-352546.pdf) Question 4 Comparative advantage Explain the theory According to Adam Smiths the theory of absolute advantage, the trade does not occur if a nation has an absolute advantage in all of productions. Nonetheless, the classical economist David Ricardo explained by his theory of comparative advantage that trade can be happened even if a nation has an absolute advantage in all of commodities. In 1817, while Ricardo explained the law of comparative advantage in Principles of Political Economy and taxation, Ricardo argued that though a nation has an absolute disadvantage in the production of two products, if it will be trade, all countries can get benefits according to comparative advantage. That is to say that even though a country has an absolute advantage in the production of both commodities, the product production that has relatively large absolute advantage makes specialize and the other country has an absolute disadvantage in the production of both commodities, the product production that has relatively low absolute disadvantage m akes specialize so then mutual benefit is possible by exchanging their comparative advantage products through free trade between two countries. Application and Analysis of comparative advantage of Spain and Saudi Arabia Data table Table 3 : Producer price : four selected products of Spain and Saudi Arabia in 2012 Spain Saudi Arabia Product Producer price (USD / tonne) Apricots 920.1 Berries 6,891 Pulses 5,701.4 Figs 1,733.2 Source : Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2012 (https://faostat.fao.org/site/703/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=703#ancor) Question 5 Factor endowment, trade and income distribution (a) Heckscher-Ohlin (H-O) model Explain the theory The Heckscher-Ohlin (H-O) model is the theory that explaining trade pattern and Bertil Ohlin argued and Eli Heckscher develpoed this model. It says a country export that is easy to produce and abundant goods, and import that is not. It also elucidated an effect of trade on the price of factors of production. The Heckscher-Ohlin (H-O) model explained the reason of comparative advantage at factor endowment and the relative price of factor tends to equalize. In other words it argued there are difference in factors of production and factor endowment, each production has different factor intensity between trade partners therefore trade occurs because of difference of comparative cost. Application and Analysis of H-O model for Spain and Saudi Arabia Data table Table 4 : Factor endowment and pattern of trade of Spain and Saudi Arabia in 2012/2014 Factors Spain Saudi Arabia Agricultural Land (sq. km) 269,600.00 1,733,900.00 Agricultural Land (% of land area) 54.05 80.66 Labour (millions) 22.93 11.22 Capital (USD) -15,141,667,020.048 164,763,650,842.157 Four major exported products Cars (8.8%) Crude Petroleum (76%) Refined Petroleum (6.3%) Refined Petroleum (5.7%) Packaged Medicaments (3.7%) Ethylene Polymers (3.7%) Vehicle Parts (3.5%) Acyclic Alcohols (2.9%) Four major imported products Crude Petroleum (13%) Cars (11%) Refined Petroleum (4.6%) Refined Petroleum (5.4%) Vehicle Parts (4.2%) Packaged Medicaments (2.3%) Petroleum Gas (4.0%) Barley (1.8%) Source: Encuesta Sobre Superficies Y Rendimientos De Cultivos (https://www.magrama.gob.es/es/estadistica/temas/estadisticas-agrarias/Regadios2014_tcm7-359782.pdf) Central Intelligence Agency The World Factbook 2014 (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/resources/the-world-factbook/fields/2095.html#sa) Observatory of economic complexity 2014 (https://atlas.media.mit.edu/en/profile/country/esp/, https://atlas.media.mit.edu/en/profile/country/sau/) (b) Stolper-Samuelson (S-S) model Explain the theory Wolfgang Stolper and Paul Samuelson determined that an exogenous increase in the relative price of a good leads to an increase in the real and relative return to the factor used more intensively in that good and a decrease in the real and relative return to the other factor. (PanagariyaArvind, 2009) Application and Analysis of S-S model for Spain and Saudi Arabia Question 6 Context of new trade theories (a) Economies of scale Explain the theory Application and Analysis of economics of scale for Spain and Saudi Arabia Data table Table 5 : domestic consumption and export : four selected agricultural products of Spain and Saudi Arabia in 2014 Spain Saudi Arabia Product Domestic consumption (Thousands of tons) Exports (ton) Domestic consumption (ton) Exports (ton) Apricots 44,665.15 Berries Pulses 112,891.43 Figs Source : Presentation of the 2013 Food Consumption Data ( December 2013, https://www.magrama.gob.es/es/alimentacion/temas/consumo-y-comercializacion-y-distribucion-alimentaria/Informe_MES_A_MES_Diciembre__2013_tcm7-321940.pdf) (b) Imperfect competition and market power Explain the theory Application and Analysis of economics of scale for Spain and Saudi Arabia Data table Table 6 : One selected agricultural product in 2011 Agricultural product name : Apricots Top 4 exporting countries Volume of production (tons) Share of world production (%) France 48,606 Spain 31,655 Turkey 28,489 Uzbekistan 26,629 Source : Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 2011 (https://faostat.fao.org/site/342/default.aspx) Question 7 Conclusion Question 8 References References Bowles, P. (2009). Mercantilism. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Falkner, R. (2011). International political economy. Retrieved 4 24, 2015, from londoninternational: https://www.londoninternational.ac.uk/sites/default/files/programme_resources/lse/lse_pdf/subject_guides/ir3026_ch1-3.pdf Kim, C. (2011). Mercantilism. Retrieved 4 23, 2015, from Naver: https://navercast.naver.com/contents.nhn?rid=104contents_id=5110 Maneschi, A. (2009). Comparative advantage. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Panagariya, A. (2009). Heckscher-Ohlin model. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Van Marrewijk, C. (2009). Absolute advantage. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Lecturer : Dr. Jacob KettoolaPage 1 of 10

Developmental Psychologists and The House at Pooh Corner - Literature Essay Samples

A.A. Milne’s 1928 classic children’s book The House at Pooh Corner remains a highly effective children’s text nearly ninety years on. This can be accredited to the format, themes and developmental concepts portrayed in the book. The concepts in the book align with those of Piaget, Vygotsky and Erikson, three influential developmental psychologists. Animism, concept formation, ZPD (Zone of Proximal Development) and the confidence in ability to learn are all central parts of the child’s development, and the book. These factors are why the stories still engage young audiences today. The main characters of the book illustrate Piaget’s theory of Animism which coincides which the child’s belief of the concept. Animism is the theory of believing that every entity has a consciousness. For example, to a child, a teddy bear is the same as them, with emotions and feelings. The book perfectly illustrates this, as all characters bar one (Christopher Robin) are portrayed as talking animals. The character’s are not individually introduced or explained but rather the reader must get a sense of the character from his/her actions, speech and pictorial depictions. Very early in the book, Pooh’s manner and tone are introduced to the reader â€Å"He’s out, that’s what it is, he’s not in, I shall have to go for a fast Thinking Walk by myself. Bother!† (p1) This simplistic and fairly comedic style of speech is an early introduction to who Pooh is. The interesting words categorise him to be a curious and quirky character and quickly engages the audience. A more important part is of this early introduction is that his appearance is depicted as a teddy bear like creature, instantly invoking thoughts of the child’s animism. The engaging personality and pictorial depiction creates a near instantaneous bond between story and audience, due to the child’s belief of Animism. Multiple times in the book, there are occasions in which an adult or peer is required in order to aid the child’s reading and understanding of the concepts being portrayed. Vygotsky’s theory was the existence of a ‘zone of proximal development’. This was the difference between the child’s ability to learn and solve problems on their own, and their ability with the non-intrusive assistance of someone else. This scaffolding process leads to an effective concept formation which gives the child an understanding of the matter that could not be achieved on their own. The most often appearing mistake which requires some aid is the way Owl spells his own name. ‘He could spell his own name WOL’ (p79) this will perhaps go unnoticed by a young solo reader, but with the assistance from someone, this simple mistake can lead to the formation of positive spelling habits for the child. The other factor with this mistake is that it occurs mid-way through the book, and happens the same way in the later stages. This makes it so that the child can recognise the mistake after being aided the first time, and this can be the cementing of the concept. This mistake is one of a few deliberate occasions in the book, all of which can be recognised and solved by the child. The mistakes can not only offer a comedic element to the child but also educational, engaging and interesting the child. This interactive nature becomes a characteristic of the book which is ‘unlocked’ by the scaffolding process. This lends an educational perspective on the text, demonstrating its persistent effectiveness. The book appears to be a novel but contains a much more picture book-like layout which can help a child conquer perhaps their first novel. Erikson’s theory of the ‘Industry vs Inferiority’ crisis provides the child with a favourable outcome of his/her confidence in their ability to learn. The almost deceptive novel format of The House at Pooh Corner can be an intimidating factor to any young readers wishing to read a larger book. This however is far from the truth, as it contains a large sum of pictures and a large font size. Not only this, but the language used in the book is predominantly very simple and it helps the young reader to push on through. In addition to these elements, the sentence length across the entire book is very short and sharp, containing few words but still carrying a strong, simple message. For example, it is very rare that any character will say more than a few words at once in a conversation. â€Å"Hallo, Pooh† â€Å"Hallo, Piglet. This is Tigger.† (p23) Even when introducing a new character, such as Tigger, there is still very little dialogue, despite the nature of the situation, and this is carried on through the entire novel. These factors make the book fairly easy to read, but because of its length, the reader will acquire a sense of achievement upon finishing it. This will push them to greater feats and most importantly, banishing the feeling of inferiority and instilling confidence in their ability to learn. Piaget, Vygotsky and Erikson’s theories of animism, ZPD and confidence in ability, all directly apply to the The House at Pooh Corner. They create a bond between audience and characters, whilst simultaneously educating and engaging the reader. This fusion of educational and recreational elements is the primary aim in creating an effective text and as has been shown, the book succeeds in these fields and has been a part of many a generation of children and will be for many more to come.