Archive for January 2013

Homework Due 6th Feb



  Select a commodity from the list, copy the price graph for the last 12 months. Explain the trend in the graph.

  Research the major modern (industrial) uses of this commodity.

  Using your knowledge of supply and demand, and your research, explain the likely causes of the price trend you have identified.

  Assess the likely consequences of the price changes on a relevant small business.

The economics of Valentines day

2012-Valentines-Day-Spending

Blogging sundays - MOOSA


Poundland's sales soar during recession
WEDNESDAY 06 MAY 2009

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/poundlands-sales-soar-during-recession-1679911.html
(UK GDP = -2.1%, recession)
This business did rather well during the recession because it is an economical option for consumers during this period of time. People are short of money as the economy isn’t doing very well therefore they prefer to pay less, cutting down on luxuries and resorting to Poundland, where everything is one pound.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_miGclPFGs

UK bank Barclays reports profits up 92% to £11.6bn in 2009
2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8517438.stm

(UK GDP= -2.1%)

This bank surprisingly did very well during the recession compared to other UK banks as they didn’t ask money from the government, which in return, provoked potential investors to invest confidently. Their shares rose rapidly.MOOSA

BLogging Sundays


New house prices soared 16 per cent in GTA in 2012 in Toronto.



http://www.thestar.com/business/article/1318857--new-house-prices-soared-16-per-cent-in-gta-in-2012-report
This business will turn in a bust because the raise in prices is too massive and may be.

 • the highrise boom went bust in 2012, with condo sales down almost 35 per cent over 2011 as demand softened;
The low-rise sector — new detached, semis, row and townhouses — saw a 19.8 per cent decline in sales because of land and approval challenges getting new single-family home projects launched;
 • New house prices have climbed 44 per cent just over the last four years as supply has decreased by 52 per cent;
 • New condos averaged 804 square feet in 2012 ($542 per square foot across the GTA), just 16 square feet smaller than 2011, as developers realized that size matters;
 • A record 60,713 units in 237 condo projects were under construction across the GTA in 2012. Some 88 per cent of those units were sold before construction even started.

Samsung sales soar; Apple's fall on the ground! (pun.)

http://www.theweek.co.uk/business/51187/samsung-profits-soar-76-rival-apple-suffers-headache

proof, at last that most people think Samsung is better than apple. (at some things, anyway) 
Posted YESTERDAY, this website says that Samsung sales soared an astonishing 76% (to $6.6 BILLION), and apples falling to $450.50 (they were $702 in September) Microsoft's profits in the final quarter of 2012 were down four per cent to $6.4 billion despite shifting more than 60 million copies of Windows 8, which should have made them LOTS of money. 
at the time (according to the BBC GDP tracker) the global GDP was -0.3%! (so an achievement!)

Blogging Sunday's

Solar energy firms 'bankrupted' after subsidies cut; 
The Government has been accused of destroying 25,000 jobs and “bankrupting a whole industry” after it unveiled plans to cut subsidies for green energy.

This article was written on the first of November 2011, which was during a recession  and it was the beginning of a double dip, the percentage change was -0.4% and it is currently -0.3%. We know this because the government cancelled the funding for the solar energy firms because they didn't have any money. This lead to the solar energy industry going bankrupt and many people loosing their jobs. 

The government's reason for making this cut was that the firms were making large enough profits and did not require any subsidies. The companies are not only going bust because they have no more money but people aren't buying solar panels and because of this the installation rate for solar panels is being decreased to attract new buyers, and if no more profits are being made employers will be let off and this will lead to a rise in unemployment.

Solar Energy Firms Article


Store growth from 2000-2009http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/pound-lands-sales-soar-during-recession-1679911.html

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/jul/02/poundland-profits-up-squeezed-shoppers
Pound-land did well during the recession which was between 2008-2011 and as you can see from the graph pound-land didn't get affected,in fact pound-land even went up and that is for several reasons. Above is the link to the article about pound-land  and how they were doing well in a recession. despite having their greatest rivals "99p stores" pound-land did really well as more people could afford to buy products from them rather than having to buy products from a rival who sells their product for 6 pounds or 7.

During the recession time, pond land used to serve 3.5 million people in 2010-2011 ,which was during a recession and now serves over 4 million people ,so if people are wondering why they are doing so well then this is why.

Pound land

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1332666/Poundland-boom-Chain-plans-dozens-stores-middle-class-storm-aisles.html

Pound land was booming during the recession in the UK, the reason for this is that there was an opportunity for people to buy the same goods for a much cheaper price, this is called a substitute. The GDP at this time (November 2010) was about -3%.

Blogging Sunday's

Blogging Sunday's


When this article was written, the GDP was around -3% when the Blockbusters follow HMV and Jessops in a horrible week for the high streets. Almost 10,000 jobs are at risk and 1000 shops might shot. Why? It is the most dangerous month of the year for shops. I think, the reason why these shops are closing is because everyone's houses are still full from all the Christmas shopping that had been done in the late December. So, this leads to all these shops that are barely making any profit now to pull the plug to avoid making any more losses.

Blogging Sundays

Blogging Sundays


How Pound land does well in a recession

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/jul/02/poundland-profits-up-squeezed-shoppers
Pound land did really well in a recession. Profits increased by 27 percent because people are trying to buy cheaper products in a recession. Pound land is a good alternative, and this is why people switch to pound land during a recession.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/jul/02/poundland-profits-up-squeezed-shoppers

Poundland does well in a recession because it is a lot cheaper than most companies, so people will always use it as a main store if other places are more expensive. People may also choose this store over other places because it may have higher quality of products and more range of products. Quality has a big effect on why people buy a product as if something is really good and is a pound, some people would prefer to buy that than pay 80p for a bad quality product.


The GDP at the time of the article was 0.9.

Boom or recession - blogging sundays


Blogging Sundays: Mothercare tries to sharpen up and cash in on baby boom…

Nothing is too good for today's infants, so midmarket retailer Mothercare must raise its game or lose even more market share.

This article was written during a boom period because not only did the baby growth boom during this period, but so did the sales for shops and demand for baby products. This creates a boom period for such shops and products because there are high demands for this product. This means such companies need to increase their supply to meet their demand.

This article was written in January 2013, during a recession and was at a percentage change of     -0.3%. So even though this period was a recession period, mothercare products were at high demand. However, mothercare must raise its supplies to meet its demanding numbers otherwise mothers and customers will buy from their rivalry companies, as substitute goods. If they don’t meet their demands mothercare will lose even more of its market share because it isnt gaining enough income let alone any profit.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/jan/27/mothercare-baby-boom-improving-stores?INTCMP=SRCH

 

Blogginh sundays

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2236014/Breastfeeding-boom-UK-older-mothers-lead-way.html

The GDP at this time was -0.3. Breastfeeding booms could save nhs 400 million.

breastfeeding booms could save nhs 400 million
http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/breastfeeding-boom-could-save-nhs-40m-a-year-8215599.html this article was written when the GDP was at -0.3

Risky Business Tactic

Have a think about how this might affect demand in the long-run. Could you Evaluate the potential benefits/drawbacks?



http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/9801908/Bitter-taste-for-drinkers-as-beer-is-watered-down-to-save-money.html

Serves them right...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/9828381/Starbucks-fights-shy-of-UK-figures-amid-fear-of-tax-backlash.html

This Weeks Blogging Sunday

Howdy Guys! Its all kicking off in the UK economy wise at the moment!


Today's task is going to be incredibly interesting for myself and hopefully for yourselves also!

I want you each to find a news story about a business during a boom period or recession in the UK. This means you have to find a story in a date which matches to the boom or recession periods using the BBC Economy Tracker. Story's such as "Apple records record profits" "Woolworth's goes bust"

You should also try to find a business which has done well in the recession and a business which didn't do well in the recession.

Find the story's and write out what GDP was when the story was written and why you think they did well/poorly in this period.

Let the blogging commence!!!

Good websites

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/uk-edition

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/

Changes to our homework system

Hi All

We have been doing homework in far too many different formats. I now want to make all homework handed into Fronter in the below folders.

We will have a homework due every Wednesday and assessed there also.

So last weeks work will go into Y10 Term 2 Homework 1

This Wednesdays will be Y10 Term 2 Homework 2


Links


http://www.bp.com/extendedsectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=40&contentId=7061813&nicam=UK%20Oil%20Spill%20Response&nisrc=Google&nigrp=UK%20Oil%20Spill%20Response%20Brand&nipkw=bp%20oil%20spill&niadv=Text%20Ad
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jul/01/bp-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-10874983
http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/blog/toxics/bp-deepwater-oil-slick-hits-gulf-coast-20100430
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/sep/06/bp-oil-spill-fishing-fears
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/13/michelle-obama-gulf-coast-oil-spill

stakeholders


Stakeholders
A stakeholder is a person, group or an organization that has interest or concern about organization.
Internal stakeholders include Employees, Managers, Owners/Shareholders. They are all affected by wages and job stability. Managers may get bonuses so they want the business to be very successful. Owners/Shareholders want the best for the company so they make more money.
They work for the business directly and if something happens to the company they will be effected. External stakeholders include Customers, Suppliers, and Government. They are involved with the company but not employed directly by the company. Customers are interested in prices and quality of the product. Suppliers are interested in the success and stability of the company so they can ensure they will have a customer in the future. The Government is interested as company's (especially large ones) pay taxes and employ people.
Not all stakeholders are equal. A company's customers are entitled to fair trading practices but they are not entitled to the same consideration as the company's employees. An example of a negative impact on stakeholders is when a company needs to cut costs and plans a round of layoffs. This negatively affects the community of workers in the area and therefore the local economy. Someone owning shares in a business such as Microsoft is positively affected, for example, when the company releases a new device and sees their profit and therefore stock price rise.

Factors Affecting Supply & Demand


Demand = PASIFIC

Population

Advertising
Substitutes
Income (Disposable)
Fashion and Taste
Income tax
Complements

Supply = PINTS WC
Productivity
Indirect taxes
Number of firms
Technology
Subsidies
Weather
Costs of production

Task 3

At the beginning of 2008 the GDP dropped into negative figures but currently it is on the rise (recovery).

The Business Cycle Response from TheGermanBurger

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
The gross domestic product of a country is how much the country earns per head per annum.

The Business Cycle
The business cycle is the periodic but irregular up-and down movements in economic activity, measured by fluctuations in GDP and other economic factors.

A 'Slump'
A 'Slump' in business terms is a decline when a company's or economy's overall activity suffers a decline. A recession could be signaled by a slump, and if noting is done to stop it, a slump will decline further into a recession itself.

A Recession
A recession is a significant decline in an economy lasting a long period (more than a few months at least). A recession can and will affect employment, sales, income and economic growth negatively. The technical indicator for a recession is two consecutive quarters of negative economic growth as measured by a countries GDP.

A Recovery
An economic recovery is a period of increasing business activity in a recession signaling its end. As a recovery is only the signal for the end of  recession, it is not always visible, much like a slump. This means that employers are not always willing to employ new staff as the recovery may not always signal the end. 

A 'Boom'
A 'boom' is a period of time in which a economy expands rapidly. Booms are sometimes found at the end of a recession.

The business cycle Gregor McMurray

GDP-Gross domestic product is the market value of all officially recognized final goods and services produced within a country in a given period of time.

The business cycle- refers to economy wide fluctuations in productions and economic activity over months or years

Economic Slump-An economic slump happens when the economy begins to decrease in growth without going into a full recession

Recession-Recession is a fall in national output. National output declines resulting in contraction in employment, incomes and profits.

Recovery- Recovery happens when the economy begins to grow again from the trough of the recession

How does the business cycle work?
The business cycle is the series of slump to recession to recovery to boom. it tends to repeat most of the tme but can sometimes do an unexpected drop or rise.

UK GDP
The current UK GDP is 0.9 percent. In 2008 it was -2.1 percent this was a bad thing for businesses in the UK because the were not gaining enough income. The current situation seems to be getting better than it was in 2008.

The total growth in 1997 was 4.2 percent. this could have affected the recession in 2008 as since people had more money the spent more while businesses gained less

Task 2

Business cycle is the recurring fluctuations in economic activity consisting of slump, recession, recovery and boom.

The Business cycle(Calum's Blogging Sunday)

Task 1 and 2: GDP stands for gross domestic product. The GDP is the amount of money a country will make after government spending and public spending per year. The business cycle is the Economic activity in the amount of production taking place. Over time, the level of economic activity in a country tends to move up and down in a business cycle. A slump is when the economy goes down or has no growth in 1 quarter. A recession is when a economies growth goes down in 2 quarters. Recovery is when the GDP in a quarter goes up after a recession within 1 quarter. A boom rises up very rapidly within a short period of time (1 or more quarters)
Task 3
The current GDP rise of the UK is 0.9%.At the end of 2008(4thquarter) was a decline of 2.1%.
The decline in the economy growth would be bad for businesses as this could cause people to be less confident and spend less on businesses.

I will finish later.

Task 1

GDP: noun- the measure of an economy adopted by the United States in 1991; the total market values of goods and services produced by workers and capital within a nation's borders during a given period (usually 1 year).

The business cycle: noun- recurring fluctuations in economic activity consisting of recession and recovery and growth and decline

Slump: | noun | a long-term economic state characterised by unemployment and low prices and low levels of trade and investment.

Recession: noun- the state of the economy declines; a widespread decline in the GDP and employment and trade lasting from six months to a year.

Recovery: The opposite of the recession, the growth of an economic state signalling the end of recession.

Boom: the state of economic prosperity.

Blogging Sunday: The Business Cycle

The Business Cycle
Hi Y10

I hope you had a great weekend. This week I will be teaching you all about the business cycle and showing you how it affects businesses in different ways. Before I do this however I want you each to do some research on the business cycle so that you are prepared to be pushed towards B-A* answers in my lesson.

Task 1

Find a definition for "GDP", "The Business Cycle" and the 4 key terms above.

Task 2

Research how the business cycle works and summarize your findings in your own words.

Task 3

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10613201

Find out what the current level of GDP growth is within the U.K. and what it was at the end of 2008. Why was the level at the end of 2008 a bad thing for UK businesses?

What do you think of the current situation?

Task 4 (Grade B-A*)

Work out the overall GDP growth for 1997. This period of growth will have been good for many firms however some have argued that these "Boom" years inevitably lead to Bust. Banks gave very cheap credit and consumer spending was very high... Why might this have made the Recession even worse when it hit in 2008?

Mr Oates is ill

Hi Y10

Unfortunately I am currently infectious and so will likely not return until tomorrow. In the meantime you have some fabulous work to complete.

Make sure you are in your teams from last term and have your group folders ready.

Task 1 - 10 Minutes Max

Considering what you learnt about Demand last lesson I would like you to discuss and then one of you write a responce to the following questions.


  1. Given we are just outside of the Christmas period what is likely to happen to demand for certain products and services? Justify your reasoning.
  2. What is it that many retailers do just after the Christmas period to deal with this change in demand? Make sure you give examples.
Task 2 - 5 Minutes Max

Given your knowledge about demand from the previous question decide as a group when the best date would be to launch your product/service. Write down your decision and justify ensuring someone different writes up this answer. Make sure you consider when people are most likely to have a higher demand for products and services.

Task 3 - Remainder of lesson

Now complete any outstanding market research and decide what your next steps will be to make sure you meet your target date.

Write up your ideas on your log and have your manager write up the key decisions for the day with clear plans for homework and the following lesson.

You have permission to conduct research on your mobile phones and electronic devices but you must ask permission from the teacher in the room ensuring you justify what you are researching.

***Ensure all progress is logged in your folder and a summary is ready for next lesson when I quiz you***




Seasonal demand is the fluctuation in demand according to the time of year, season or cultural/religious events. Common examples of this are Christmas, Divali or Eid, where people purchase more gifts for people such as "Happy Holidays" cards and toys. Also, in Dubai, we tend to try and escape the country in winter and summer months raising demand for airlines. Seasonal demand is a recurring phenomenon.

Gifts I have received this Christmas include a Star Wars themed key torch, some fridge magnets of the same theme, some books and some shirts. These gifts would have likely been given to other people for Christmas also, and this tells me that there is a large demand for items such as this.

Demand changes because of the weather as demand can increase for umbrellas for example if it rains, and sun cream if the sun will shine. It can also change because of the customers, for example if a customer is from Europe they may not be interested in buying things like guns whereas in America there are many avid gun owners and the demand would be higher.

Other examples can include people who like things such as rock climbing. This event is more likely to occur in summer.

Seasonal Demand
Seasonal demand is the demand of certain products based on the time of year. an example would be there is a higher demand for toys during Christmas than any other time of the year as everyone is buying toys for their children.

Gifts this Christmas
This Christmas i got a guitar amp. I got this at Christmas because they tend to make more amps and products during this time of the year and the shop that it came from had ordered some in for Christmas  they had also had a 30 percent discount for the Christmas holidays. this was their tactic to sell more during the holidays.

Changing Demands
Demands change based on culture as different people celebrate different holidays. An example wold be that in countries were Christmas is widely celebrated there would be a lot of demand for gifts whereas a country where Christmas is not celebrated as much as other holidays there might be more demand on different days.
The weather can affect the demand of certain items as the need for different things changes when the weather changes. For example during the summer holidays when it is sunny and people go outside there might be a high demand for outdoor activities such as rock climbing or biking. During the winter there might be high demand for hot food and drink like hot chocolate and possibly candles.

Products and services that will change throughout the year
Products that change throughout the year could be things like outdoor activities which mainly occur in the summer. these might not be so popular in winter in countries that get cold as people might not want to do things in the cold. Things like laptops and phones might become popular during the winter as Christmas is nearing during that time and they are popular Christmas presents


Rowans work :]



Task 1

Seasonal demand
Supply of manufactured goods and services is little affected by seasonal factors. But demand for these goods is subject to seasonal fluctuation.
In some cases it can be explained in terms of culture and customs e.g. religious festivals.
In other cases the seasonality can be explained in terms of the weather.


Task 2
I received smarties as a Christmas present, I received this present as it is a seasonal event and the smarties were Christmas designed as if they were to be sold.

Task 3
Demand changes on culture as there are different celebrations in different religions such as Eid in the Muslim religion, this Demands gifts from stores as it is a event of giving. Christmas celebrations also require presents as it is generally a time of giving. Different weathers affect demand as if there is a natural disaster such as an earthquake people may buy survival materials such as food and water.

Task 4
 Airports and flights will be more common in the winter times as people will want to see abroad family to celebrate Christmas, the same being in the summer as people try and go to warmer places to spend the summer.   

seasonal demand


Seasonal demand
Supply of manufactured goods and services is little affected by seasonal factors. But demand for these goods is subject to seasonal fluctuation.
In some cases it can be explained in terms of culture and customs e.g. religious festivals.
In other cases the seasonality can be explained in terms of the weather


Seasonal demand

Supply of manufactured goods and services is little affected by seasonal factors. But demand for these goods is subject to seasonal fluctuation.
In some cases it can be explained in terms of culture and customs e.g. religious festivals.
In other cases the seasonality can be explained in terms of the weather.

Seasonal Demand: Blogging Sunday


Hello Y10 I hope you had a fab Winter Break! Today's blogging Sunday is all about something called seasonal demand.

Demand is defined on Tutor2U as follows:

 "Demand is the quantity of a good or service that consumers are willing and able to buy at a given price in a given time period."

Below you will see a bunch of photos of some of the presents I bought for my Nieces and Nephews for Christmas. Not everyone in our class will celebrate Christmas but some may have Eid or Diwali and so on where gifts or money are exchanged.

The point is at certain points during the year there are times when the demand for certain goods or services are higher. This is known as a demand fluctuation or simply where the numbers of people willing and able to buy something change.

The winter season in the UK is an excellent example of where we might see demand for certain products go up. Today your task is the following"

Task 1
Find a definition on this website for seasonal demand

Task 2
List some of the gifts you may have received over the winter break or at other important times in the year. Why were they given at this time of year?

Task 3
Explain why demand changes depending on culture, customers or even the weather. 

Task 4
Give some examples of other products or services which will change depending upon the time of year.





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